by Alex Schwartz

Two of the three Big Five schools from the Atlantic-10 got big-time pledges yesterday. Both La Salle and Temple added key pieces to their programs, dipping into local, fertile recruiting ground for their commitments. Tyreek Duren '10 of Neumann-Goretti (PA) committed to La Salle and Aaron Brown '10 from St. Benedict's (NJ) selected Temple.

Tyreek Duren, a 6'1 point guard who really boosted his stock this summer while playing AAU ball with Team Final, had narrowed his college choices to a trio of A-10 schools. At first it seemed like UMass was the favorite to land Duren, but then Temple came on strong, yet it was ultimately La Salle that got a verbal pledge from the in-state standout, in news that was broken by Northstar Basketball via our Twitter page.

It was the depth chart that led Tyreek to pick the Explorers, stating the following when asked how he made his choice: "Because they needed a guard since they are losing almost their whole starting lineup. The other schools all had people there playing the guard position."

Duren, who confirmed that UMass and Temple were his other finalists, informed me that location was not a key factor in his decision. "Not really because if it came down to that I most definitely would have picked Temple." Asked what he meant by that, the floor general responded, "Because there isn't really much to do around La Salle's campus, whereas [at] Temple, you're right in the middle of Broad Street." Needless to say, this was "not really" something that Duren was concerned with when making his college selection, as different people like different things.

"It feels good to get it off my chest and now I can just focus on the school season," replied Duren when asked how it feels to have the decision behind him." The future Explorer compares his game to Chris Paul, and that makes sense, as he is a quick PG who can both score and distribute the rock.

Duren is the second member of La Salle's class of 2010, joining 6'10 center Matt Lopez of Washington Township (NJ), the #38 ranked player in our ranking of New Jersey's Fab 45 Upperclassmen.

Although Temple missed out on Tyreek, the Owls did pick up another player who I consider to be a borderline top 200 player in the nation in Aaron Brown. The 6'5 small forward was ranked #20 in the aforementioned New Jersey Fab 45 Upperclassmen ranking. How did Brown decide on Fran Dunphy's program? "First [off], I like the coach. [The school has] good academics, [I am] cool with the team, love the city of Philly, and [I am] excited to play in the Big Five." He added that there was not one thing in particular that led to his choice, but rather was "just everything in whole" about the school.

Brown also considered Boston University, UPenn, Harvard, Miami, and Rice before making his commitment. When I spoke with Aaron in mid-June at the Rumble in the Bronx, he told me that his favorites were Harvard and UPenn. Asked what led him to go another route, the sturdy wing replied, "I don't know, I just felt most comfortable there [at Temple]."

Floridian big man Anthony Lee is the first member of Temple's class of 2010, but as of now Brown does not have any relationship with him. The Garden State baller was unsure of whether or not he will be recruiting other players to join him at the A-10 school, saying, "I don't know, got to see what's up."

Before he gets to college, Aaron will be playing one final year at St. Benedict's, one of the top high school programs in the nation. What does Brown feel the Gray Bees are capable of achieving in 2009-2010? "Definitely [being] number one in the country. Our team is really deep this year and if everyone plays their roles, the sky's the limit." Brown was the third of seven players—the most of any school—from Danny Hurley's program to be ranked in New Jersey's Fab 45 Upperclassmen. St. Benedict's will likely start the season ranked #2 in New Jersey and top 10 in the nation by Northstar Basketball.

Note- photos are from http://scouthoops.scout.com