Murphy – As one of five Bulldog basketball players who didn’t play football this season, junior Dillian Brown was desperately waiting for the football season to end. Not because he wanted his teammates to lose, but because he couldn’t wait to get onto the court.
After practicing for just one week before the season opener against Fannin County, Murphy’s return to the court went mostly as planned. The Bulldogs led by as many as 22 points Saturday and bested the Rebels, 67-52.
“I’ve been so hyped, I’ve been ready this year,” Brown said. “Football took a long time, but it’s time for basketball. It feels amazing.”
Brown led Murphy with 16 points, and sophomores Dominick Rummler and Zach Skogen joined him in double figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Standing 6’5 and 6’4, Rummler and Skogen, along with Hunter Laney, were able to take advantage of the size advantage down low. Fannin County wasn’t a big team, and the Bulldogs took advantage by getting opportunities in the lane and controlling the glass.
After leading 15-11 at the end of the first quarter, Murphy took over in the second quarter. The Bulldogs looked to push the tempo whenever possible, with Brown and junior Cole Laney usually leading the fast break. Murphy closed the half on a 14-4 run, with the 14 points coming from five different scorers. For Brown, it started with the Bulldogs defense.
“It was the press,” Brown said. “That’s what we do at practice all the time. We have a dude named Coach Curtis who kills us on defense at practice. He stays on our butt about it.”
Murphy continued to push the tempo in the third quarter, with a three by Hunter Laney and layups by Brown and Ty Laney extending the lead to 39-18. The lead would stay at 21 points, 45-24, heading into the fourth quarter.
It was a frantic final frame, with the two teams combining for 52 points. The Rebels (1-3) took advantage of the Bulldogs’ lack of practice time, getting quick shots and putting on a full-court press in an attempt to pull off an improbable comeback. Murphy went too fast for much of the final quarter, committing several turnovers and not working the clock when it could get into half-court offense.
Fannin County was able to cut the lead to 13, but a hustle play by Cole Laney led to a layup by his twin brother, Ty, that thwarted any unlikely chance for a Rebels comeback.
The Bulldogs will have two games this week to continue to try to get up to speed, hosting Enka today before traveling to Cherokee County foe Hiwassee Dam on Friday night.
Brown said the team has only put three plays in so far, and not everyone has picked them up yet. However, it is early, and there’s nowhere to go but up with so little practice time.
“We’re very rusty right now,” Brown said. “We just started since football just ended. I believe this is a really good team, and we have a good group.”