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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.

Here are boys and girls basketball players who stood out last week and received our weekly ESPNChicago.com game balls.

Boys

Brian Howard, St. Ignatius: Howard put up 26 points in St. Ignatius’ 68-66 win over St. Patrick on Saturday.

Jubril Adekoya, Andrew: Adekoya had 20 points and 13 rebounds in Andrew’s 81-51 win over Stagg on Friday.

Gavin Schilling, De La Salle: Schilling had 20 points and 10 rebounds in the Meteors’ 62-50 win over Farragut on Tuesday.

Michael Orris, Crete-Monee: Orris, an Illinois recruit, had 26 points, seven assists and four steals in Crete-Monee’s 70-56 win over Rich East on Friday.

Jared Brownridge, Waubonsie Valley: Brownridge connected on five 3-pointers and scored 29 points in Waubonsie Valley’s 66-61 win over Neuqua Valley on Wednesday.

Girls

Sara Ross, Montini: Ross put together a triple-double in Montini’s win over Milwaukee Riverside on Saturday. She had 13 points, 15 rebounds, 12 assists and five steals.

Kiela Garner, Rich South: Garner had 11 points, 11 rebounds and seven steals in Rich South’s 62-44 win over Phillips on Monday.

Arneasa Blair, Oswego East: Blair filled up the stat sheet with 20 points, five assists, five rebounds, three blocks and four steals in Oswego East’s 53-41 win over Oswego on Friday.

Jewell Loyd, Niles West: Loyd outscored New Trier in Niles West’s 45-23 victory on Tuesday. Loyd had 25 points and 16 rebounds.

Madeline Eilers, Benet: Eilers went off for 33 points in Benet’s 84-52 win over Plainfield North on Tuesday.