UConn star to depart

Two years ago, Charlie Villanueva thought he was ready for the NBA. This time, he says, he's sure.

The University of Connecticut's 6-foot-11-inch, 240-pound sophomore forward announced yesterday that he will forgo his final two years of college eligibility to enter the NBA draft.

It will be the second time Villanueva has gone through the NBA evaluation process. Coming out of Blair Academy in Blairstown, N.J., in 2003, Villanueva declared for the draft, but changed his mind after workouts in front of NBA scouts.

"I knew I wasn't ready," Villanueva said. "I know I have to work on my body, to get stronger, but I'm 100 percent confident this time. I didn't have that feeling coming out of high school."

Villanueva led the Huskies in scoring this season, averaging 13.6 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Scouts have projected that he will be a late first-round pick.

Villanueva will be the eighth player during coach Jim Calhoun's reign at UConn to leave school early for the NBA, and the coach said he is not shy about telling players when he thinks they are not ready. "I don't think Charlie's making a mistake," said Calhoun. "Would I have liked him to stay for another year? Yeah. Could he use another year? To some degree, they all could."

Finalists named
Utah's Andrew Bogut, Dee Brown of Illinois, Sean May of North Carolina, Duke's J.J. Redick, and Wayne Simien of Kansas were named finalists for the John R. Wooden Award as college basketball's player of the year. The award will be presented April 9 from the Los Angeles Athletic Club. Voters chose a 10-member Wooden All-America team, with the top five vote-getters named Wooden Award finalists. The other Wooden All-Americans are: Francisco Garcia of Louisville, Chris Paul of Wake Forest, Salim Stoudamire of Arizona, Hakim Warrick of Syracuse, and Deron Williams of Illinois . . . Eastern Michigan has hired Michigan assistant Charles Ramsey to be its head coach, a university source told the Associated Press. The school will hold a news conference today. Ramsey replaces Jim Boone, whose contract was not renewed after he went 48-96 over five seasons . . . Saint Mary's coach Randy Bennett received a six-year contract extension after leading the Gaels to a 25-9 record and their first NCAA Tournament berth since 1997. The deal keeps Bennett under contract through the 2010-11 season . . . Cal State-Fullerton coach Bob Burton signed a contract extension that keeps him with the Titans through the 2009-10 season . . . An attorney has filed a class-action lawsuit challenging the University of Pittsburgh's new season ticket policy, which lets the school reassign some seats depending on how much a ticket holder donates to the school.