UCLA Reserve Transferring To Oklahoma

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ Reserve forward Ryan Wright plans to transfer from UCLA's back-to-back Final Four teams to play at Oklahoma, Sooners coach Jeff Capel said Tuesday. <br/><br/>The 6'8, 240-pound

Tuesday, May 22nd 2007, 4:32 pm

By: News On 6

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ Reserve forward Ryan Wright plans to transfer from UCLA's back-to-back Final Four teams to play at Oklahoma, Sooners coach Jeff Capel said Tuesday.

The 6'8, 240-pound Wright played in 28 games last season for the Bruins, who lost to eventual national champion Florida in the Final Four last month after being the runner-up to the Gators the previous season.

He has two years of eligibility remaining, but will have to sit out the 2007-08 season due to NCAA transfer rules.

Wright averaged 1.9 points and 1.6 rebounds in 69 games for UCLA, including four starts.

``He's a talented young man who just hasn't had a lot of individual success in college basketball yet,'' Capel said. ``But coming to a new environment and a new program, I think his potential for growth and improvement is very good.

``He has some physical talent that you just can't teach with his size, his strength, his body and his athletic ability. He's a very smart young man and we think he has a chance to be a very, very good player in our program.''

Wright averaged 21 points and 10 rebounds his senior year at Loyola Catholic Secondary School in Mississauga, Ontario.

``He's a great kid, very personable,'' Capel said. ``He's a guy who will be respected by his teammates and I think he has the potential to be a very good leader for us in the future.''