Babcock McGraw: DePaul's Campbell has the triple-double fever

What's in a number?

For Kelly Campbell, the answer used to be: Not much.

DePaul's star sophomore guard never knew what her stats were in high school.

Her parents didn't keep them. Her coach never made a big deal about them.

"I never knew how many points I had. I didn't even really care," said Campbell, a New Jersey native whose high school was ranked No. 1 in the state, No. 8 in the country and won a state championship. "I just worried about if we won."

It's still a worry for Campbell, who is trying to keep DePaul (14-5) among the top teams in the Big East.

But these days, she's a little more cognizant of the numbers behind the wins and the losses.

That tends to happen when people around school start calling you "Triple-Double."

In late December, Campbell notched the first triple-double of her career when she put up 11 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists against Seton Hall.

Two days later against St. John's, Campbell was right on the Triple-Double doorstep again, finishing with 10 points, 12 rebounds and 9 assists.

The stat-stuffing seemed to be contagious as five days after Campbell's near-miss in the St. John's game, Shakyla Hill of Grambling State put up the first quadruple-double in NCAA history in 25 years. Against Alabama State, she had 15 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals.

"That's amazing," Campbell said of Hill's feat. "(A quadruple-double) would be pretty cool. I thought a triple-double was pretty cool.

"It is really pretty fun. It's a nice accomplishment. Some people are calling me 'Triple-Double' and they tell me I need to go get more. I just laugh and say, 'I'm trying, but it's not that easy.'"

Of course, that won't deter Campbell. She's got the fever now.

"It was a big goal of mine to get (a triple-double) ever since Jess (Jessica January) got one last year," Campbell said. "And now I want to get more."

An impressionable freshman last year, Campbell was struck by the versatility of DePaul star Jessica January, who graduated last year as one of DePaul's leaders in points, assists and steals. January got a triple-double last season and one the season before. She is DePaul's all-time leader in career triple-doubles with 2. Diana Vines got the first triple-double in school history in 1989.

Campbell's triple-double last month was only the fourth in school history.

She would love to keep adding to that total by continuing to fill the stat sheet. Mostly though, she wants to be known for the kind of versatility that is associated with triple-doubles.

"I've never been amazing at one thing. I just try to do everything. I try to do a lot of different things," Campbell said. "To me, (getting triple-doubles) just means that I'm doing the controlables, getting rebounds is a big thing. Getting teammates open, that's big. Being unselfish, that's big.

"I always think that if I do the things I can control, everything else will come."

That must be the philosophy of Sabrina Ionescu of Oregon.

Ionescu is the queen of stat stuffers in this college basketball season full of stat stuffers.

Ionescu is just a sophomore at Oregon, and yet she already holds the NCAA's all-time record for career triple-doubles.

In December, Ionescu got the eighth triple-double of her young career. The NCAA record for career triple-doubles had been seven.

It took Ionescu just 48 games to set that record.

"That's pretty incredible. I'd love to keep up with that," Campbell said. "Double-doubles are good, but now, I want to get those triple-doubles."

pbabcock@dailyherald.com

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