by Alex Schwartz

When Duke offered star junior Alex Murphy of St. Mark's (MA), many expected he would eventually end up selecting the Blue Devils. The 6'8 small forward did take the time to weigh his options and considered a number of schools, including Florida, where his older brother Erik plays, and Boston College, where his father Jay played.

On Monday morning, Scout's Evan Daniels broke the news that Murphy had made the decision to commit to Mike Krzyzewski and the defending national champions. Murphy is the #20 ranked player in the NBE Post-Summer Class of 2012 Top 50.

Although Murphy is currently the lone member of Duke's 2012 recruiting class, there is a chance that he could become the fifth member of Duke's 2011 haul instead. Even before Murphy popped, rumors had been circulating for a little while that he could end up in Durham this coming fall. Murphy reclassified after his freshman year when he transferred from Prout (RI) to St. Mark's.

"I was one of the younger kids in my grade [and now I get another] . . . year of maturing, getting better [and working in the] . . . classroom," Murphy told me in May of 2009 as to why he made the decision to reclassify.

It is still unclear whether Murphy will move back into the 2011 class or stay as a 2012 player. Murphy told Daniels that he has "not thought about that yet," and also said, "The 2011 or 2012 thing will be something discussed with my family sometime in the spring and after the season."

If Murphy is to rejoin the class of 2011, he would likely be ranked in the top 35 nationally. Regardless of what year Alex Murphy joins the Blue Devils, his skill set and versatility will be a fantastic addition for Mike Krzyzewski and Co.

In other commitment news that came today, Oliver Ellison of Gonzaga (DC) committed to Howard. The news of the 6'8 senior center's commitment came from the Twitter page of his high school head coach, Steve Turner.

Ellison is a long, shot blocking post player who is still developing. He has some nice upside and is a good pickup for first year Howard head coach Kevin Nickelberry.

Per ESPN and Hoopniks, Ellison is the fourth commitment for Howard in the class of 2011. He joins 6'7 power forward Abdul Kasim of Word of God Academy (NC), 6'0 point guard Sim Frazier of Maury (VA), and 6'5 forward Brandon Bailey of Largo (MD) as seniors committed to the Bison.

While I have not seen Bailey play, the other three are all very nice additions for the rebuilding MEAC programs. Kasim is a sturdy big man who rebounds well, while Frazier is a true point guard who knows how to direct an offense. In addition, Kasim, Frazier, and Ellison either play for a powerful high school program (Ellison and Kasim) and/or big-time AAU program (Frazier with Boo Williams and Kasim with the CP3 All-Stars).

Note- photo of Murphy is from http://wap.boston.com/ and photo of Ellison (#42 in white) is from http://www.washingtonpost.com/