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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Saturday / November 23.
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La Salle

La Salle coach Dr. John Giannini scored a major coup Monday when he landed 6-foot-10 senior big man Aaric Murray out of Glen Mills in Philly.

The story was first reported by Jeff Goodman of FoxSports.com.

Ranked the No. 6 center in the Class of 2009 by Rivals and No. 35 overall, Murray averaged 19 points, 11 rebounds and 2 blocks last season. He is a major score for the Explorers, still recovering from the rape scandal of a few years ago.

Murray wanted to stay in Philly and was considering the city’s three Atlantic 10 programs, La Salle, Temple and St. Joe’s, along with Rutgers, Marquette and West Virginia. West Virginia had long thought it had a shot for Murray, but he opted to stay home.

“He wanted to stay in Philadelphia,” a source said. “He felt comfortable.”

Lance Stephenson, Rutgers

Courtney Nelson will compete for the William Paterson men’s basketball program after transferring from Rutgers.

Nelson played for the Scarlet Knights during each of the last two seasons, but left the team midway through last season after being declared academically ineligible. The 6-1 guard appeared in 13 games during the 2007-08 campaign, averaging 3.2 points and 1.8 rebounds while playing 13.7 minutes per contest. During the 2006-07 season, he saw the court in all 29 games and started twice, averaging 3.7 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists per contest.

“It was a very difficult decision to leave Rutgers,” said Nelson, who will use his final year of eligibility while playing at William Paterson this winter.

Duke, Kansas, Maryland, St. John's

James Padgett, a 6-foot-8, 220-pound senior power forward from Brooklyn Lincoln who plays alongside Lance Stephenson, visited Maryland over the weekend.

“I would say it was a fair visit,” Padgett told TerrapinTimes.com.

Next up for Padgett is an official to Pittsburgh this weekend. The Panthers recently got a commitment from 6-8 PF Dante Taylor.

Providence and St. John’s are also in the mix, and the Johnnies are trying to set up a visit.

Meanwhile, Harrison Barnes, a 6-6 SF from Ames (IA) ranked No. 1 among small forwards in the Class of 2010, put on a show last Wednesday during an Open Gym. Check out this video.

Dominic Cheek

Tennessee will get the first official visit from St. Anthony star Dominic Cheek.

“He’s going to visit Tennessee,” St. Anthony coach Bob Hurley said. “That’s the first one that’s set.”

Omari Knight, Cheek’s uncle, previously said the visit would take place this coming weekend, which is when the Volunteers host SEC rival Florida in a nationally televised football game.

Seton Hall and Memphis have already had in-home visits with the 6-foot-5 Cheek, and Kansas head coach Bill Self and assistant Joe Dooley are in tonight (Monday).

Rutgers Football

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Maybe a change of scenery will do the Rutgers football team some good.

At least that’s what head coach Greg Schiano hopes entering Saturday’s game at Navy (3:30 p.m, CBS College Sports Network). The Scarlet Knights (0-2) have been outscored 68-19 in back-to-back home losses at Rutgers Stadium — both of which came on ESPN. They have lost five of their last seven home games dating back to the Maryland game last year.

“I love taking the team on the road for the first time, and that is always a fun thing each year because it’s just you and them,” Schiano said. “You’re traveling together, you’re away from Rutgers and then when you take the field, you’re the enemy. There’s that strip of red (fans) in whatever stadium we’re in, and then everybody else is against us.”

Read the full story here at SNY.tv.

College Football

After three weekends of college football, some things are becoming clear across the nation. The stock of some players, teams and leagues is up, while that of others is clearly declining….

WHO’S UP?

Mark Sanchez — USC QB threw four TDs when Trojans routed Ohio State — again — on a national stage on Saturday night. This is the third straight time Ohio State has been embarrassed in the big game, including two flops in the national title game.

Michael Crabtree — Texas Tech wideout had 8 catches for 164 yards receiving and scored three touchdowns in the #12 Red Raiders win over SMU.

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