Whitehaven's Matthew Murrell throws down three dunks in state tournament debut rout

MURFREESBORO — Whitehaven had no trouble in its 60-24 Class AAA boys basketball quarterfinal victory over Sevier County on Wednesday.

It means that the Tigers (25-7) will play Bearden (30-5) in the semifinals on Friday at 1:15 p.m.

But it also means that Matthew Murrell, who missed last year's postseason with a broken wrist, had a successful state tournament debut. He took on the role of team manager during last year's run to the Class AAA championship game. He proudly says he was the "best manager out" during that time. This year, he's the Tigers' go-to option. 

"It’s a blessing. My teammates helped pick me up because it's a new environment to me," said Murrell. "And they’ve been there before so that just helped me out on the floor. It helped me get comfortable."

The four-star guard threw down three thunderous dunks, including a third-quarter alley-oop that brought a smile to his face. He shot just 3-of-9 from the field in the first half so he began attacking the rim with authority. It resulted in a team-high 17 points. 

"When you can fly that high you need a stewardess with him being up in the air that long," Sevier County coach Ken Wright said of Murrell. "He’s a great player and what makes him so great is he works on both ends of the court. He plays hard on defense, he attacks on offense. He’s a complete player and the real deal and he’s got a great future ahead of him."

Whitehaven coach Faragi Phillips said that having Murrell back and gaining experience as a go-to option has been a tremendous boost for the team. He has delivered in clutch situations such as the region semifinals when he hit a game-winning buzzer-beater to save the Tigers' season. 

"We’re going to go as far in this tournament as he can lead us, so he has some big responsibilities but I wouldn’t want to shoulder those things on anybody else," Phillips said. 

At 7-foot-2, Whitehaven's Jordan Wilmore stood 10 inches taller than Sevier County's tallest player. He opened the game with four quick points on a dunk and a layup. The Tigers led for the remainder of the game. 

The Tiger defense blitzed the Smoky Bears, forcing 20 turnovers and blocking five shots. Whitehaven won the rebounding battle 39-28. Sevier County made just six field goals. 

Both teams were atrocious from 3-point range, going a combined 1-for-31. Phillips's son Kolby hit a three on the last shot of the game. 

"So guess what he’s going to be saying tomorrow at shoot around? I need more minutes," the coach said with a laugh. 

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