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Lawson And Ellington Leaving North Carolina

POSTED: 3:36 pm EDT April 23, 2009

(Sports Network) - North Carolina stars Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington have decided to skip their senior seasons to apply for the NBA Draft.

Lawson was the ACC Player of the Year this past season, averaging 16.6 points with 6.6 assists. The 5-foot-11 sparkplug also captured the Bob Cousy Award as the nation's top point guard.

Ellington was North Carolina's top three-point threat, making a team-best 85 shots from beyond the arc. He connected at a rate of 41.7 percent from long distance and was the squad's third-leading scorer overall at 15.8 points per game.

The two played prominent roles in North Carolina's run to the national championship this spring.

Lawson, after missing the ACC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament opener with a toe injury, led the Tar Heels in scoring and assists at 20.8 points and 6.8 assists in five tournament games. He scored 22 points in the national semifinal win over Villanova, then had 21 points with a championship-game record eight steals in the title victory against Michigan State.

Ellington was the second-leading scorer and rebounder at 19.2 points and 5.7 boards in six tournament games. He scored 20 points against Villanova and 19 points in the title game, capturing the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player.

"Winning a championship definitely had a lot to do with it," Ellington said of his decision. "There's no better way to go out."

With Lawson and Ellington leaving school early and the graduation of both Tyler Hansbrough and Danny Green, the Tar Heels will lose their top four scorers from this past season.


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