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Published: Thursday, April 10, 2008
UCLA's Howland says Love, Collison undecided
Associated Press
UCLA All-American Kevin Love and teammate Darren Collison have not yet decided whether they will make themselves available for the NBA draft, coach Ben Howland said Wednesday.
He dismissed a report on the Los Angeles Times' Web site that said the players had decided to leave and were expected to hire agents, which would prevent them from returning to the Bruins next season.
"It's an erroneous report," Howland, adding that Love and Collison were very upset about the report because they had yet to discuss their future with their families.
College players have until April 27 to declare for the June draft.
Love, a freshman center, led the Bruins in scoring (17.5 points) and rebounds (10.6). Collison, a junior point guard, was a third-team All-American who averaged 15.2 points and 3.9 assists.
The Bruins (35-4) lost in the national semifinals to Memphis on Saturday.
"There's definitely a chance that Darren will come back," Howland said. "Nothing has been decided yet."
Draft: O.J. Mayo is leaving Southern California after one season to enter the NBA draft. Mayo plans to hire an agent, which would prevent him from returning to the Trojans. He said he plans to finish his spring classes and then prepare for the June draft. Mayo averaged 20.7 points and 4.5 rebounds, and set freshman school records for scoring average, points in a season (684) and 3-pointers (88).
Texas A&M freshman DeAndre Jordan said he will enter the NBA draft without hiring an agent, giving him the option of returning to the Aggies. The 7-foot center averaged 7.9 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Early entrants have until June 16, 10 days before the draft, to withdraw.
Syracuse freshman forward Donte Greene has declared himself eligible for the NBA draft. He led the Orange in scoring at 17.7 points per game.
West Virginia forward Joe Alexander has declared himself eligible for the NBA draft. Alexander said he will not sign with an agent.
Oklahoma forward Blake Griffin will return for his sophomore season instead of declaring for the draft.
Loyola Marymount: Bill Bayno returned to college basketball after an eight-year absence, signing a five-year deal to coach Loyola Marymount. Bayno guided UNLV to a 95-65 record and two NCAA tournament appearances in 1995-2000. He was fired during the 2000-2001 season after allegations he broke rules in the recruiting of Lamar Odom in 1996 and 1997, but the NCAA cleared him of wrongdoing. He later filed a wrongful termination suit and received a settlement from UNLV.
Oklahoma City: Ray Harper resigned as the coach at NAIA Division I champion Oklahoma City University to pursue job opportunities at a major college program.
Beer ads: For more than 100 college presidents and athletic directors, beer and the NCAA men's basketball tournament don't mix. The college leaders -- among them the top officials at Harvard, Abilene Christian and Georgia State -- wrote a letter to NCAA President Myles Brand calling beer advertising "embarrassingly prominent" during tournament broadcasts. They asked the organization to reconsider its policies on alcohol advertising. The Center for Science in the Public Interest in Washington, D.C., which helped organize the letter, accused the NCAA of violating its own policies that supposedly limit beer advertising to 60 seconds per hour and no more than 120 seconds per telecast. The center said it counted 200 seconds and 240 seconds of beer advertising during Saturday's two semifinal games, and 270 seconds during Monday night's final, when Kansas defeated Memphis 75-68 in overtime.
Naismith Award: Memphis' John Calipari was named Naismith National Coach of the Year by The Atlanta Tipoff Club. The Memphis coach led the Tigers to the NCAA title game where they lost 75-68 in overtime to Kansas.
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