University of Connecticut Athletics
Charlie Villanueva Joins the List of
6/28/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
New York (June 28, 2005)-- University of Connecticut forward Charlie Villanueva (Brooklyn, N.Y.) was selected Tuesday night with the No. 7 pick in the 2005 NBA Draft by the Toronto Raptors.
Villanueva becomes the fourth UConn lottery selection in the past four seasons and is the seventh Husky under Jim Calhoun to earn selection in the lottery portion of the first round since 1994. Villanueva joins Emeka Okafor (2004), Ben Gordon (2004), Caron Butler (2002), Richard Hamilton (1999), Ray Allen (1996) and Donyell Marshall (1994) as Husky lottery picks. Villanueva is the tenth UConn product selected in the first round under Jim Calhoun and the Huskies have now had 16 players selected in the past 17 years.
“I couldn’t be happier for Charlie", said UConn coach Jim Calhoun. "He continues to prove that there is no substitute for hard work. And, given his talents and the work he put in for two years at UConn and that he continued to do so while he had tryouts for various teams, he became another Husky who impressed scouts; and as a result, he was rewarded by a great place in the draft. We are all very happy for him and wish him all the best in what should be a very successful NBA career.”
Villanueva appeared in 63 games in his two seasons as a Husky, starting 35 of those contests, including all 31 games as a sophomore in 2004-05. He was the Huskies leading scorer this season, averaging 13.6 points and 8.3 rebounds while earning All-BIG EAST and NABC All-District Second Team honors. He played his best ball down the stretch in 2004-05, averaging 18.2 points and 9.7 rebounds over the final ten games of the season and averaging 19.0 points and 9.5 rebounds during the NCAA Tournament. Villanueva led the team with 12 double-doubles on the year.
Villanueva was a BIG EAST All-Rookie team selection as a freshman in 2003-04, helping the Huskies to the 2004 NCAA National Championship. He came to UConn as a consensus All-American as a senior at Blair Academy.
