The University of South Florida men's basketball team wraps up its busy week with non-conference action at East Carolina Saturday night. The matchup with the Pirates will mark the third contest in five nights for the Bulls and the second-straight road outing. While USF and ECU did share the same league for a brief time, Conference USA, the two programs have met just five times in men's basketball. The Pirates own a 3-2 lead in the all-time series, but the Bulls have claimed the last two matchups.
Mattis Not Satisfied With Double Effort
Already in possession of three double-doubles in five games this season, senior forward McHugh Mattis reached new heights in the victory over Winston-Salem State.
The North Lauderdale, Fla., native collected the second triple-double in program history against the Rams, finishing with 22 points, 10 rebounds and 10 blocks in 40 minutes of action. He was 8-of-8 from the floor and also had three steals.
The only triple-double by a USF player previous to Thursday night came Dec. 4, 1996. Adrian Hillman posted 13 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in a 76-68 victory over the Owls.
Mattis' triple-double is the third in NCAA Division I men's basketball this season. Lamar Sanders (Lamar) and Stephane Lasme (Massachusetts) each accomplished the feat in mid-November.
Triple-Double Not The Only Accomplishment
McHugh Mattis' triple-double included several related marks also worthy of recognition.
His 10 blocks marked the second-best single-game total in program history and he matched his own record for field goal percentage (1.000) with a perfect 8-of-8 night. Mattis was 10-of-10 from the floor versus Iowa State as a junior. He has now finished three games in his career without missing shot after attempting at least seven field goals.
Through games of Dec. 7, Mattis is currently leading the nation in blocks-per-game (6.0 bpg.). His four double-doubles rank him eighth in the nation and his 11 career double-doubles are fourth among active players in the conference.
Mattis has also taken over the scoring lead (19.0 ppg.) in the BIG EAST from teammate Melvin Buckley.
