Nov. 14, 2009

PHILADELPHIA - A pair of local products - point guard Tyreek Duren and center Matt Lopez - have signed national letters of intent to play basketball at La Salle University, head coach Dr. John Giannini announced today. The two will begin play in 2010-11.

"We are thrilled to welcome Tyreek and Matt to La Salle," Giannini said. "I expect them to enhance our program with their talent, work ethic and character."

Duren (6-0, 180), ranked as the 25th best point guard nationally by ESPNU, led Neumann-Goretti to a 26-3 record and Philadelphia Catholic League title last winter. He averaged 13 points, 6.5 assists, and 3.5 rebounds to earn Third Team Class AAA All-State honors from the Associated Press. The three-star recruit and #32 ranked point guard by Scout.com also earned second team all-Catholic League and third team all-city honors from the Philadelphia Daily News. He also played for Team Final in AAU.

"The guard positions are a great need for us in this class and Tyreek should be an outstanding four-year player for us," Giannini said. "He is a point guard who has college level strength and successful experience against the top competition in the nation. I feel he will be ready to help us immediately but he will also improve over time to have a great career and be a cornerstone for the continuity of our program."

Lopez (6-10, 220) averaged 12 points, nine rebounds and four blocks for Washington Twp. as a junior to earn first team all-Gloucester County and first team all-Olympic Conference honors. He helped the school reach the South Jersey Group IV finals last season.

"As we recruit talented guards and look to play more guards in the future, we need outstanding big men to go with them," Giannini said. "I believe Matt will do exactly that for us. He has great size and good basketball skills. His work ethic is truly tremendous. He has made himself into a highly conditioned, great running big man. He will work hard to improve his strength and I also love his coachability. I expect Matt to help us continue our success in the Atlantic 10."