PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pitt sophomore center Chris Taft said Monday he’ll bypass his final two college seasons and enter the NBA draft.

The 6-foot-10 Taft made the announcement – which Pitt coach Jamie Dixon had been expecting since the Panthers’ NCAA tournament loss to Pacific – during an interview on ESPN2.

Taft finished third on the team in scoring (13.3 points) and was second in rebounding (7.5), but has the size, quickness and athleticism that NBA teams prize. NBA scouts have projected he could be a top 10 pick in the June draft.

Dixon also expects junior point guard Carl Krauser to leave for the draft, as Krauser has been hinting for weeks. Because he sat out his freshman season after a year at a prep school, Krauser must graduate from Pitt this year to be eligible next season.

With senior forward Chevon Troutman also leaving, Pitt might lose its top three scorers from the 20-9 team that lost its second-round Big East tournament game to Villanova and its only NCAA tournament game. The Panthers had played in the Big East title game the previous four seasons and reached the NCAA round of 16 the previous three seasons, with Taft, Troutman and Krauser as key performers in the 2003-04 and 2002-03 seasons.

After a 10-0 start this season, Pitt finished with only 10 wins in its last 19 games, with surprise losses to Bucknell, St. John’s, Georgetown and two losses to Big East rival West Virginia.

Taft had a disappointing season after making the Big East preseason first team. Expected to be one of the nation’s top big men, he was benched periodically by Dixon for lackadaisical play or defensive letdowns – sometimes at key stretches of important games.

The 6-foot-2 Krauser, who averaged a team-high 16 points and 5.9 assists, is less likely to be an early pick. It is possible he might not hire an agent and, depending what happens in the draft, could choose to return to Pitt.

However, Krauser would be 24 next season, and said after the Pacific loss that, because of his age, it might make sense to turn pro now.

If Taft and Krauser leave, Pitt’s leading returning scorer going into next season will be guard Antonio Graves (7.8 points).

AP-ES-04-04-05 1359EDT