Los Angeles – UCLA point guard Darren Collison will return to school for his junior year rather than enter the NBA draft.
The 6-foot-1, 165-pounder made the announcement Wednesday – four days before the deadline for underclassmen to declare for the draft. Collison averaged 12.8 points, 2.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 2.3 steals while playing in 35 of UCLA’s 36 games this season.
Sophomore forward Luc Richard Mbah a Moute also said he would return for his junior season.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Clemson’s Mays opts for NBA draft
Clemson forward James Mays made himself eligible for the NBA draft but did not hire an agent, leaving open the possibility of a return to the Tigers for his senior season. He averaged 12.2 points and 6.4 rebounds as a junior.
Eastern Washington guard Rodney Stuckey said he will make himself available for the draft, but will not hire an agent. Stuckey averaged 24.6 points last season as a sophomore, leading the Big Sky Conference in scoring.
Georgia Tech freshman point guard Javaris Crittenton will enter the draft, following the lead of classmate Thaddeus Young a day earlier. Crittenton, who does not plan to hire an agent, matched Young for the team scoring lead, averaging 14.4 points.
Illinois center Shaun Pruitt, a third-team all-Big Ten pick last season as a junior, has submitted his name for the NBA draft.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
No major changes from BCS meetings
BCS officials concluded three days of meetings in New Orleans with no major changes to the system used to crown a champion. The commissioners from the 11 major conferences and Notre Dame athletic director Kevin White discussed a wide range of Bowl Championship Series issues, including the standings and automatic qualification standards, and decided to stand pat, said Southeastern Conference spokesman Charles Bloom.
OLYMPICS
Six Austrians banned for life
Six Austrian cross country skiers and biathletes received lifetime bans from the Olympics for involvement in an organized blood-doping scheme that shook the Turin Games – the harshest sanctions given to athletes by the International Olympic Committee.
It’s the first time the IOC has disqualified athletes for doping violations without positive tests, and the first time athletes have been banned by the IOC for life. Based on evidence seized in Italian police raids, the Austrians were found guilty of possessing prohibited substances and taking part in a doping conspiracy.
The results of the Austrian athletes from the 2006 Games were annulled, although none won medals.
Those banned were cross country skiers Martin Tauber, Juergen Pinter, Johannes Eder and Roland Diethart, and biathletes Wolfgang Perner and Wolfgang Rottmann. The six are ineligible for accreditation in any capacity at the Olympics – as athletes, coaches or officials.
Also, the IOC executive board endorsed president Jacques Rogge’s proposal for a Youth Olympics starting in 2010 for athletes aged 14-18.
SOCCER
Wizards keep Toronto FC winless
Eddie Johnson, Kerry Zavagnin and Yura Movsisyan scored to help the Kansas City Wizards beat Toronto FC 3-0 in rainy conditions. The Wizards, playing in their home opener, improved to 2-1-0. Toronto FC fell to 0-3-0 and not scored a goal in its three-game franchise history.
Joe Cole scored in the 29th minute to give Chelsea a 1-0 victory over Liverpool in the first leg of the Champions League semifinals. The second leg will be Tuesday.
Alan Ball, the youngest member of the England team that won the 1966 World Cup, died of a heart attack after trying to put out a compost heap fire in his garden. He was 61.
FOOTNOTES
U.S. tops Sweden in worlds warm-up
Avalanche forward Paul Stastny scored with a two-man advantage, and Phil Kessel had a goal and two assists to help the United States beat Sweden 5-3 in a warm-up for the world championships in Stockholm, Sweden. David Backes, Chris Clark and Adam Hall each added a goal for the Americans, set to open preliminary-round play against Austria in Moscow on Friday.
Detroit Red Wings forward Tomas Holmstrom (eye) and defenseman Brett Lebda (ankle, concussion) will miss tonight’s NHL playoff game against the San Jose Sharks.
Australian Libby Lenton’s 100-meter freestyle time of 52.99 seconds in a mixed relay against Michael Phelps at this month’s Duel in the Pool won’t be ratified as a world record, ruled FINA, the governing body of swimming.
