The Murphy Bulldogs will face off against the Andrews Wildcats at 8:00 p.m. on Thursday. Murphy is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 65.4 points per game this season.
Last Tuesday, Murphy was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 58-53 to Hayesville.
Cale Harger
| 02/11/25 @ Hayesville | 16 |
| 02/10/25 @ Swain County | 8 |
| 02/07/25 vs Cherokee | 9 |
| 02/04/25 @ Andrews | 11 |
Despite the defeat, Murphy got top-tier performance from Cale Harger, who dropped a double-double with 18 points and 16 rebounds. Harger has been hot recently, having posted eight or more boards the last four times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Ryan Payne, who posted seven points in addition to nine assists and six rebounds.
Even though they lost, Murphy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 11 offensive boards in three consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Andrews waltzed into their contest on Tuesday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They walked away with a 64-52 victory over the Maroon Devils.
Andrews' win came from a few key players Murphy will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Gabe Clark, who went 8-for-18 en route to 24 points along with seven boards and five assists. Ty Clark was another key player, dropping a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Andrews pushed their record up to 17-6 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home. As for Murphy, their loss dropped their record down to 12-10.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Murphy has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 36.9 boards per game. However, it's not like Andrews struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33.9 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Murphy came up short against Andrews when the teams last played last Tuesday, falling 55-45. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Clark, who went 8-for-18 to rack up 27 points and five assists. Now that Murphy knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
