Jordan Howell is a solid basketball player whose contributions do not always show up in the box score.

Howell does not put up stats like All-American candidate Chris Lofton, but his leadership and experience have paid dividends for the Vols this season.

In his senior year of high school, Howell was a finalist for Alabama's Mr. Basketball in 2003 and led Bob Jones High School to a 30-6 record.

Howell originally signed with Georgia but received a release from his letter of intent.

Through their first six games Tennessee turned the ball over 19.5 times a game.

After Pearl changed the lineup to include Howell, turnovers dropped to 14.4 a game and their assist-to-turnover ratio improved from 0.8 to 1.0.

Howell broke his right hand early in the season in practice before playing Texas, and would miss a month of action.

During that stretch, Tennessee would go 4-3 with all losses being by three points or less.

After getting injured early in the season, Howell's injury forced younger players like Ramar Smith to grow up fast.

After beating Texas in overtime, coach Bruce Pearl mentioned the impact of Howell. "Ramar Smith is finding his receivers.He is smart, and he is coachable. Smith has learned from Jordan Howell, and he has learned from himself."