Triple-Doubles Not All That Common

After going 89 seasons without officially recording a triple-double, North Carolina has collected two in three games as it prepares for Saturday’s game against UCLA at Pauley Pavilion.

Brendan Haywood, a 7-foot center, had 18 points, 14 rebounds and a school-record 10 blocks in a 67-45 victory over Miami on Dec. 4. And in a 95-74 victory over Buffalo on Sunday, forward Jason Capel contributed 16 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

In terms of the record books, though, the triple-double statistic is somewhat misleading because assists and blocks were not counted in the old days.

Maybe that’s why there are only two UCLA triple-doubles on record--neither by guys named Alcindor or Walton. Jelani McCoy had 15 points, 10 rebounds and 11 blocks against Maryland in 1995. Nine days later, Toby Bailey had 23 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Stephen F. Austin.

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The Bruins have inched up in the Sagarin ratings to No. 97, seven spots higher than last week. Six Pac-10 schools are ranked higher: Stanford, 1; Arizona, 18; USC, 32; Arizona State, 38; Oregon, 78, and Cal, 88.

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UCLA players and coaches took a break from practicing Monday to visit the City of Hope Cancer Center in Duarte, where they met children battling life-threatening illnesses.

“It’s uplifting and heartbreaking at the same time,” Coach Steve Lavin said. “But you come away from the experience feeling really inspired.”