A.J. Hammons has verbally committed to Purdue.

Hammons, a 7-foot center from Oak Hill Academy, also considered Cincinnati and Minnesota.

Hammons is ranked by ESPN as a top-80 recruit of the 2012 class.

V.J. Beachem, a 6-foot-7 wing of the class of 2013, has committed to Notre Dame.

“Number one I wanted to play close to home,” Beachem said. “Then playing in the Big East and the power of a Notre Dame degree were factors in my decision.”

He excels as a perimeter shooter and is athletic and long enough to defend multiple positions. As a sophomore, he averaged nearly 18 points per game for the Hawks.

He chose the Irish over Butler, Purdue, Iowa and Minnesota.

“Notre Dame is the perfect fit for me and my family,” Beachem said.

Purdue head coach Matt Painter was in attendance on Friday to see Gary Harris score two touchdowns for Hamilton Southeastern.

Harris scored on a 28-yard reverse and then caught a 29-yard touchdown pass.

Harris, one of the top-20 basketball prospects nationally in the Class of 2012, made his official visit to Purdue last weekend. He will visit Indiana next weekend, followed by Kentucky (Oct. 22) and Michigan State (Nov. 5) before making a decision.

The Los Angeles Athletic Club has announced its Preseason Top 50 list today on ESPN.com. Chosen by a preseason poll of national college basketball media members, the list is comprised of 50 student-athletes who, based on last year’s individual performance and team records, are the early frontrunners for college basketball’s most prestigious honor.

Nineteen of the 50 players named were from two conferences, the Big East (10) and Big Ten (9). The SEC had seven players chosen, followed by the ACC, Big 12, and Pac-12 each with four; and the Atlantic 10, Big West and Conference USA with two each. Conferences with one players named include the Horizon League, Ivy League, MAAC, Missouri Valley, Mountain West and WCC.

For the first time, a school had four players listed as North Carolina had Harrison Barnes, John Henson, Kendall Marshall and Tyler Zeller selected.