updated 7:30 p.m. ET March 24, 2006

OAKLAND, Calif. - Adam Morrison isn’t about to make a quick decision on whether to turn pro and skip his final season at Gonzaga.

The nation’s leading scorer played in what might have been his last game for the Bulldogs on Thursday, a heartbreaking 73-71 loss to UCLA in the third round of the NCAA tournament.

Morrison, a 6-foot-8 junior forward and probable NBA lottery pick, is widely expected to turn pro. He scored 24 points Thursday and finished the season averaging 28.1 points to edge Duke’s J.J. Redick for the scoring title. Redick scored 26.8 points per game in his senior season, but he and the top-seeded Blue Devils also were eliminated Thursday in a loss to LSU.

An emotional Morrison, who fought tears in the final seconds and had to be helped off the floor by UCLA’s jubilant players after the final buzzer, said he will return home to Spokane, Wash., and then start thinking about what’s next.

“It’s going to be a family decision,” Morrison said in Gonzaga’s somber locker room. “I’ve got to hear from the people who write the checks. ... I have no idea (when). I’ve got to go back to Spokane and not do anything. I have no idea what I’m going to decide.”

Morrison’s teammates said he thanked them after the game for their sacrifices and teamwork that allowed him to have such a sensational season.

“If it’s the last game, I can say he’s the best player I’ve ever played with,” forward Sean Mallon said.

Coach Mark Few has repeatedly called Morrison “a warrior” — and UCLA’s players agreed.

“I saw him lying there in tears and I just felt for him,” said Bruins guard Arron Affalo, who helped Morrison to his feet at midcourt after defending him all night. “He has no reason to cry. He’s a great player and he’s going to have a great career.”

Morrison had five games with 40 or more points this season and is third on the school’s career scoring list with 1,867 points, having passed John Stockton and numerous others this year.

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