Cannon Crompton/sports@cherokeescout.com Murphy senior Elijah Twiggs gets up for a shot against Cherokee on Friday.
Murphy – With a win over Cherokee Friday night, the Murphy boys varsity basketball team secured the Big Smoky Mountain Conference championship.
The Dogs were the top team in the regular season and capped it off with winning the Big SMC title.
To earn a spot in the championship game, the Dogs defeated Andrews after Cale Harger drained a buzzer beater.
Dogs beat Cats
The Murphy vs. Andrews second round Big SMC game on Feb. 18 is one that Cherokee County basketball fans will remember for a long time.
Murphy defeated Andrews 71-68 in a tight game from start to finish.
The Dogs took an early lead in the first quarter, then the Wildcats fought back late. Murphy took a 19-18 lead to the second quarter.
After multiple lead changes in the second quarter, they went to halftime tied at 38. It was anyones ballgame heading into the second half with the opportunity to play for the conference championship on the line.
The Dogs took the lead early in the third quarter, but then Andrews closed the gap and put pressure on the Dogs. It remained anyones game heading into the fourth quarter with the Dogs leading 52-49.
They went back and forth throughout the fourth quarter. Late in the quarter, Andrews went on a run to take the lead before Murphy closed the gap.
The Dogs called a timeout with 40.9 seconds left as Andrews led 68-66. With 14 seconds left, Murphy tied the game at 68.
Andrews took its time heading down the court looking for the game winning shot. On a 3-pointer Andrews missed and it was rebounded by Cale Harger.
From beyond half court, Harger shot the ball as time expired and drained the game winning shot to send the Dogs to the Big SMC championship game.
After he made the shot, the Murphy student section rushed the court to celebrate with the team and the Bulldogs fans loudly cheered.
With the 71-68 win, the No. 1 seeded Bulldogs were set to face No. 3 seeded Cherokee.
Boys win title
The Bulldogs faced Cherokee in the Big SMC championship on Friday night. With the Dogs’ 78-59 win, they secured the title.
Cherokee took an early lead in the high-intensity championship contest. The Dogs battled back late to take a 24-14 lead to the second quarter.
The Dogs continued to lead through the second quarter. A late dunk from Abram Twiggs gave the Bulldogs a 36-22 lead at halftime.
Both teams had at least 20 points in the third quarter. Cherokee was tried to cut into the lead, but the Dogs only kept them at a distance.
The dogs added late points to lead 57-42 heading into the final quarter.
Murphy continued to keep Cherokee at a distance in the fourth quarter en route to winning the game 78-59 and securing the Big SMC title.
In the championship game, Twiggs led the Dogs with 23 points. Tyler Payne had a big night with 20 points.
Also in double digits was Harger with 10 points.
Up next
The Dogs earned the No. 2 seed in 2A West in the state playoffs and received a first round bye. In the second round on Thursday night, they will host the winner of Hayesville vs. Albemarle.