Coach John Giannini returns the most scoring and rebounding of any Atlantic 10 school. And now the program has added a colossal recruit, certainly the biggest since Giannini took over five seasons ago, and the most highly-regarded for quite some time.

Glen Mills senior center Aaric Murray, a Philadelphia native, has verbally committed to play for the Explorers, choosing La Salle over Temple, Saint Joseph's, Villanova and West Virginia.

"I'm so comfortable with La Salle, it's a real good fit for me socially, academically and athletically," said Murray, 6-11, 260 pounds. "Of all the schools that were recruiting me, in my heart, La Salle was it for me. The coaches, the players and the school just made me feel like I belong there."

Ranked the sixth-best center prospect by ScoutHoops.com, Murray attracted attention from virtually every big-time program. His desire to stay close to the Philadelphia area and his fondness for Giannini were key factors in his decision.

"Coach Giannini is a real person and an honest one," Murray said of his future coach. "In getting recruited, I felt no other coach appreciated me the way he does. When I told him I wanted to go to La Salle, his reaction was like I had made his year."

This year already has the potential to be a good one for Giannini. His team returns 74 percent of its scoring and just about all of its rebounding, a category in which the Explorers were third in the conference last season. Also, highly touted 6-9 forward Vernon Goodridge, who sat out last season after transferring from Mississippi State, joins the team, immediately giving the Explorers a strong inside presence. Like Murray, Goodridge was a Top 50 high school player.

Glen Mills coach Craig Mellinger thinks Murray, who began playing organized ball only 2 years ago, will be an excellent addition to the La Salle program in 2009-10.

"He is extremely athletic," Mellinger said. "I've been doing this a while and I haven't seen many with Aaric's size as naturally athletic and fluid as he is. Usually guys that move like him are about 6-1. He is still a work in progress, but progress is constant with him. Things on the basketball court come to him quickly. He's a very fast learner.

"We post him up a lot because of his height advantage, but he can face up from 15 feet. What I like most about his game is he is very unselfish, can read defenses and passes very well. It would be easy for him to be selfish, being so much bigger than other players. But he feels double-teams coming and instinctively gets rid of the ball to the right people at the right time."

Murray averaged 19 points, 11 rebounds and a pair of blocks as a Glen Mills junior. He will be reunited with many familiar faces at La Salle next season.

"I played against [redshirt freshman point guard] Karon Burton last season when he was at Chester, and I know a lot of the local kids on the team, like Rodney Green [Prep Charter] and Devon White [Strawberry Mansion]. I know Vernon [Goodridge] and the Williams twins [Jerrell and Terrell]. I'm looking forward to playing with them."

La Salle finished last season at 15-17, including an 8-8 conference record, and reached the A-10 tournament semifinals. Returning are four juniors and four sophomores who all saw significant playing time last season. *