Murphy – The basketball gods put a cap on the Bulldogs’ basket at Bishop McGuiness during the first period, or at least it seemed that way, as Murphy didn’t have a basket in the first period and went on to fall to the Villains 65-52.
The bright spot for the Dogs on March 5 was Xander Wachacha scored his 1,000th career point.
Murphy’s only points in the first period came off three made free throws from Ryan Payne with one second left. Payne was fouled while attempting a 3-pointer. The Villains had no problem scoring in the first, as they piled in 13 points to take a 10-point advantage into the second period.
Murphy fought back to within two points in the second period when Payne hit a 3-pointer with 4:14 left. That’s when the Villains made a run of their own.
Bishop scored 11 points in the back half of the second period, and Murphy’s only score came off a Wachacha 3-pointer with 20 seconds left in the half. Bishop led the Dogs at the half 29-19.
The Villains outscored the Dogs 18 -13 in the third period to build their lead to 15 points. Will Joyner kept it close for the Dogs as he accounted for six of the Dogs’ 13 points by knocking down two 3-pointers.
Wachacha knocked down a field goal at the 4:08 mark in the third period to reach the 1,000-point plateau. Murphy trailed 47-32 going into the fourth.
The Dogs never gave up and tried to make another run at the Villains, but could get no closer than 10 points. Wachacha hit two 3-pointers in the fourth period, while Cale Harger came off the bench to lead Murphy’s attack in the final period with two 3’s and a field goal for eight points.
John Campbell of the Villains led all scorers with 24 points. Murphy had two players in double figures, Wachacha and Payne, both with 11 points.
After the game, head coach Eric Laney said, “I am extremely proud of this team. They are extremely good basketball players and even better young men.”
Murphy ends the season with an 18-10 record. Four of Murphy’s five starters will graduate this year, with Payne the only returning starter. His brother, Tyler, will be back as well as Brady, Conner Golden and Harger, all who saw playing time this season.