Life Center Academy bolsters ranks

It has been a busy week for the Life Center Academy basketball team.

Senior swingman LaQuinton Ross made an oral commitment to play at Ohio State on Monday night. Several hours earlier, Pittsburgh recruit John Johnson officially transferred from Girard College to Life Center.

The senior point guard became the second Division I prospect to transfer to the Christian school in Burlington. Former Roman Catholic shooting guard Andre Horne officially became a Warrior on Friday. Life Center will be the third school in three seasons for the junior, who attended Hodgson Vo-Tech in Newark, Del., last year.

"That's the one thing we are trying to do year in and year out: We are trying to bring in the top players," Life Center coach Wilson Arroyo said.

The school, with 349 students from kindergarten through the 12th grade, has sent 44 players to NCAA Division I and Division II schools in the last decade.

The 6-foot-8 Ross is regarded as the nation's 60th-best prospect in the Class of 2011, according to Rivals.com. He is ranked 65th by Scout.com.

Ross averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds in 10 games after transferring to Life Center from Murrah High School in Jackson, Miss., on Jan. 11.

"I love the Ohio State program, and I liked what they did with Evan Turner last year," Ross told Scout.com after choosing the Buckeyes over Syracuse, West Virginia and Baylor. "I got real close with the coaching staff, and that was a big reason why I went with Ohio State."

The 6-foot-1 Johnson is committed to Pitt. He averaged 22.2 points, 4.4 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 2.9 steals last season at Girard.

His mother, Arlene Johnson, said her son transferred because of academics, not basketball. She said her son's grades slipped in the last school year.

"After talking to Wilson, they more so want to focus on school and prepare him for college," she said. "He lost focus because of the changes in Girard's administration."

Life Center officials say that 85 percent of their high school graduates go on to four-year colleges or universities.

"I like everything about that school," Arlene Johnson said. "If they wanted John in the ninth grade, I think I would have taken John out of Girard and sent him there."

Last season in Delaware, Horne was a first-team all-state selection by the Delaware Sportswriters and Broadcasters Association. The 6-3 180-pounder was Delaware's second-ranked prospect in the Class of 2012, according to ESPN.com.