March 18, 2003

University of San Francisco head basketball coach has signed a new multiyear contract extension with incentives, Executive Director of Athletics Bill Hogan announced today.

"Coach Mathews and I have the same goals. We want to finish as one of the top two teams in the league on a regular basis, and get to postseason play," said Hogan in making the announcement. "We have set the bar high, and with the excellent recruiting class that Phil and his staff are bringing in we feel he can meet them.

Mathews has recorded a 122-109 record in his eight years on the Hilltop. He took the Dons to their first NCAA berth since 1982 when the Dons won the West Coast Conference tournament by topping Gonzaga in 1998.

"Phil's kids have graduated, they are terrific off the court and he has followed NCAA rules," Hogan continued. "We are also enthused about his upcoming recruiting class that was ranked 26th in the nation even before signing transfer Dommanic Ingerson from Michigan. Ingerson was in the Top 20 nationally out of high school."

This year, USF started slowly but won 14 of its last 22 games despite the loss of the WCC leading scorer Darrell Tucker for six contests. The Dons won seven of its final nine league games after Tucker's return and finished third in the league race, just behind WCC tournament champion San Diego and Gonzaga.

Mathews also ramped up the offense this year and the team led the league in field goal, three-point and free-throw percentages. It was the first time that USF has led the league in shooting percentage since 1979.

"Bill Hogan and I both agree that we want to take the program to the next level," said Mathews in accepting the contract. "There is a feeling out there that our program is moving in the right direction. We are getting better funding and better players. My staff and I are thrilled to be back and guiding what we think will be a winning program for years to come."

Mathews took over the reigns at USF on July 11, 1995 after a tremendously successful run at Ventura College.