Mason County roots for Lofton

"I know they're rooting for me,'' he said Monday, "but they want Kentucky to win.''

Saturday it was a visit to Louisville. Tonight, Tennessee's freshman guard continues his Old Kentucky Home week when the Wildcats come to Thompson-Boling Arena.

There was a day when Lofton dreamed of playing for the Wildcats. But that day was longer ago than most people might think.

"When I was real young I was a huge Wildcat fan,'' Lofton said, "but as I got older, I turned into a Louisville fan.''

Lofton scored 15 points in the Vols' loss to Louisville, one game after dumping in 22 in the upset win at Florida.

He's averaging 12.1 points and leads the SEC in 3-point accuracy at 50.5 percent (47 of 93).

"I've noticed in the last month that things are coming to him a little bit quicker,'' said UT coach Buzz Peterson.

"The thing I worry about going through this league is that he stays fresh and doesn't wear out.''

Kentucky coach Tubby Smith is as impressed as everyone else with the contribution Lofton is making to the Vols.

"I don't think anyone expects a freshman to jump in there and play as well as he's played,'' said Smith.

"He's playing well at Tennessee because they need him to play well.''

There is a sizable contingency of Wildcat fans who feel the Bluegrass State's "Mr. Basketball" would have played well in blue. But Kentucky never made a run at Lofton.

"They didn't really want me,'' said Lofton, "but you couldn't blame them. They had three McDonald's All-Americans coming in and they were ranked higher.

"It was just a decision they made. It was a good decision.''

Kentucky's freshman class includes touted guards Ramel Bradley, Rajon Rondo and Joe Crawford. The Cats had also taken Western Kentucky transfer Patrick Sparks and signed guard Adam Williams, who is delaying his enrollment to next year.

"We like to take as many in-state (players) as we can,'' Smith said. "Unfortunately, we didn't take him (Lofton).

"He's a very talented player. He's shooting lights out.''

Of the Wildcats freshmen, Rondo is the only Kentuckian. He and Lofton played AAU ball together on the Derek Smith All-Stars and remain good friends.

"We maybe talked about going to the same school,'' Lofton said, "but it wasn't nothing major. We just had to do what was best for ourselves.''

For Lofton, Tennessee couldn't have worked out much better.

"I just wanted to go somewhere I knew I was going to play right away and get major minutes,'' he said. "Like I am now.

"This is perfect for me.''

Mike Strange may be reached at 865-342-6276.