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Senior guard Alvin Ellis, of Chicago's De La Salle High School, committed and signed his letter of intent to the Michigan State Spartans on Wednesday.

Ellis, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard, was previously signed with the Minnesota Golden Gophers. He averaged 20 points, six rebounds and four rebounds for De La Salle in the Chicago Catholic League this past season.

MeanStreets AAU coach Tai Streets, Ellis’ club coach, thought Ellis would excel at Michigan State under Spartans coach Tom Izzo.

“I love Izzo though I’m a Michigan alum,” said Streets, who played football at Michigan. “That’s my guy. I know I’m going to get into trouble for that, but it’s true. If it’s not Michigan, you can’t go wrong with Izzo.

“I think it’s a great fit for Alvin. First of all, he’s a hard worker. He’s in the gym every day. His shot has improved. His ball handling has improved. Everything has improved. He’s going to be great at Michigan State. I think it’s a steal.”

Izzo, who missed out on fellow Chicago recruit Jabari Parker earlier this year, also spoke highly of Ellis in a statement.

“Alvin will be a great addition to our backcourt,” Izzo said. “We like his offensive skill set, especially his shooting touch, hitting 40 percent from three each of the last two seasons. He has good length and versatility, with the ability to defend a couple different positions on the perimeter. Combine his great work ethic, his great family background and his commitment to academics, and I expect him to be the type of player that really develops during his time as a Spartan, enjoying the complete student-athlete experience.”

Ellis joins his former high school teammate Gavin Schilling in Michigan State’s 2013 recruiting class. Ellis and Schilling were teammates at De La Salle during their junior seasons. Schilling spent his senior season at Findlay Prep in Nevada.

Dave Telep and Paul Biancardi break down the top recruiting classes in the ACC. The wealth is spread across the top, as the five highest rated prospects all committed to different schools.

Dave Telep and Paul Biancardi offer a blueprint for success for coaches taking over programs this offseason.

Loyola junior guard Cully Payne will not return for his senior season, and Payne’s younger brother Quinten Payne, a high school senior guard, has asked and been granted a release from his letter of intent, the school announced on Friday.

“Cully has indicated to me that he will not return for his senior season and subsequently, Quinten has asked for a release from his NLI,” Loyola coach Porter Moser said in a statement on Friday. “We wish Cully and Quinten nothing but the best in their future endeavors.”

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With Northwestern now looking for a new coach, basketball recruit Jaren Sina will be released from his letter of intent, but is still considering the Wildcats, his father said on Tuesday.

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Dave Telep’s Friday recruiting notebook includes an introduction to one of the nation’s most impressive freshmen, a look at Indiana’s big recruiting weekend, why John Calipari’s words resonated with the nation’s No. 2 junior, Illinois putting in work on the recruiting trail and more.

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Being Illinois' head coach got John Groce in most doors when he was first hired and began recruiting the Chicago area.

Groce's sales pitch then was a mixture of the past along with predicting the future. He spoke of what he had done at Ohio and what he thought he could with Illinois. Some recruits knew of Ohio because of Chicago product D.J. Cooper and its NCAA tournament appearances, but not everyone was familiar with the Bobcats.

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Champaign Centennial (Ill.) junior power forward Michael Finke committed to Illinois on Wednesday.

Finke, who is 6-foot-9 and 190 pounds, also had offers from Iowa, Kansas State, Purdue, Wisconsin, among other schools. He is ranked the 16th power forward in the Class of 2014 by ESPN.

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Chicago Simeon's Jabari Parker, the No. 2 senior in the country, will announce his collegiate plans on Dec. 20, according to his high school coach.

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Hall of Fame point guard and Chicago native Isiah Thomas said Tuesday he recently had an opportunity to pass on some recruiting and off-the-court advice to Chicago Simeon forward Jabari Parker, the nation's No. 2 senior.

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CHICAGO -- Chicago Simeon Career Academy forward Jabari Parker, the nation's No. 2 senior, said Friday he will attend college rather go on a mission next year and two local schools could have been options for next year if it wasn't for coaching changes.

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The nation's no. 2 overall player, Jabari Parker (Chicago/Simeon), talks about what he's looking for in a school and when he anticipates making a decision.

Normal U-High (Ill.) junior forward Keita Bates-Diop committed to Ohio State on Sunday, according to his club coach Mike Mullins.

Bates-Diop, a 6-foot-7 forward, chose the Buckeyes over offers from DePaul, Illinois, Marquette, Michigan, Northwestern, Stanford and Wisconsin, among others. He is ranked No. 27 in the Class of 2014 and No. 3 in Illinois by ESPN Recruiting.

Bates-Diop's recruiting especially took off during this past spring and summer after playing with the Illinois Wolves on the club circuit.

"I think he is one of the young players to have a terrific last spring, summer and fall," ESPN recruiting coordinator Reggie Rankin. "His stock skyrocketed with his play. Terrific combination forward, excellent skill, size, good IQ, can score inside and out, can rebound it, can pass it. He has tremendous upside. He really helped himself with his play over the last seven or eight months. He was one of hotter 2014 guys.

"Ohio State plays that spread, ball screen and stretch offensive set. He'll be good in it."

Bates-Diop averaged 15 points and five rebounds as a sophomore at Normal U-High.

Bates-Diop is Ohio State’s first Class of 2014 recruit.

In sports, it's important to protect your home court. You hear all the time how vital it is to win home games.

Well, the same holds true in recruiting. Sure, it's great to have a national recruiting reach -- and the best programs can recruit across the country. But it's equally important to keep the best in-state talent home.

With that in mind, here are the schools in the bigger conferences that have best protected their borders in recruiting through the first three days of the early signing period. It's important to note that all of the classes on this list not only include multiple in-state players, but also at least one ESPN 100 prospect. Keeping talent within state borders is one thing; keeping elite talent is even better.

Note: This list includes the "big six" conferences plus Conference USA. The Atlantic 10 has no school with more than one player from its own state at this time.

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