UCLA basketball: Recruit William ‘Shaq’ Goodwin picks Memphis

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William ‘Shaq’ Goodwin emerged from his third-period anatomy class Tuesday and proceeded to break UCLA fans’ hearts.

The two-sport standout from Decatur (Ga.) Southwest Dekalb High announced via Twitter that he would play basketball and football for Memphis, spurning the Bruins only two days after concluding his official visit to Westwood.

Goodwin, a 6-foot-8, 235-pound power forward and tight end, had told The Times during his visit that he would not make his college choice until the spring signing period.

UCLA’s early signing class is expected to include highly touted swingman Kyle Anderson and shooting guard Jordan Adams, who could sign letters of intent as soon as Wednesday. The Bruins are also pursuing center Tony Parker and small forward Shabazz Muhammad, a pair of standouts who are expected to announce their college decisions in the spring.

UCLA had two inside connections to Goodwin that didn’t pan out: assistant Korey McCray was Goodwin’s coach with the Atlanta Celtics club team and Adams was a former club teammate of Goodwin’s. Goodwin said Sunday that McCray’s presence was ‘not a big factor’ in his recruitment.

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-- Ben Bolch