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Maturity and work ethic have flipped a switch for KeShawn Murphy's impact at State

3rupauk8_400x400by:Robbie Faulk•01/04/25•

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Keshawn Murphy (Photo by Mississippi State Athletics)

It’s been almost a year since KeShawn Murphy stepped away from the Mississippi State program.

The talented forward from Birmingham, Ala., wasn’t thrilled with his role on last year’s basketball team and he even entered the transfer portal at year’s end. When Murphy made a final decision he was going to be a part of Chris Jans’ team in the offseason, the switch flipped.

Since that time, Jans has been vocal about Murphy’s energy, attitude and his improvement over the course of the year and it has been backed up on the court. He made another statement on Saturday to open SEC play in the 85-50 blowout win over South Carolina for the No. 17 Bulldogs.

“He’s never been this healthy this long since he entered college. He hasn’t been disrupted in his growth and his work in the weightroom,” Jans said. “He had some rough patches last year and put his name in the portal and I don’t think we got a better recruit in the portal or high school class than him.

“There were some stressful times in the portal. I understood why. He believed in it all in the end and loved his time here and his teammates. He’s been as consistent as anyone we’ve had since we reported in June.”

Murphy delivers balanced performance to spark Bulldog beatdown of USC

With Michael Nwoko battling foul trouble and inconsistencies in the game, Murphy stepped up to the plate on both ends. The junior forward filled up the stat sheet with 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting, eight rebounds, four blocks, three assists and a steal.

Games like Saturday are a result of all the time that Murphy has put in to better himself.

“He was flying around,” Jans said of Murphy. “He was moving the ball and running offense. The work will eventually show up. It may not show up the next game, but if you continue to pound away, it will surface. He has way more good games than not because of what he’s doing when nobody’s watching.”

Murphy was also a catalyst in the Bulldogs’ dominance inside against Collin Murray-Boyles and Nick Pringle as Murray-Boyles had five points on 2-of-9 shooting and Pringle finished with eight. State also had a 52-24 edge in the paint with a 40-32 edge on rebounds and 10 blocked shots.

A season after Murray-Boyles and former Gamecock big man BJ Mack dominated the Bulldogs to take a close win inside Humphrey Coliseum, State was ready. It flipped the script and USC was in trouble from the start.

“It started with reps in practice. We repped it out time and time again,” Murphy said. “Coach Jans got on us and emphasized certain things that they do and we got it on to the floor. The gameplan was executed at a high level.”

A year later, Murphy making his impact felt

Coincidentally, this SEC opener a season ago at South Carolina would be Murphy’s last for one month when he decided to step away from the team. He played just five minutes and scored four points and left the game wanting more for himself than playing a role.

While he came back a month later to help the team in some big moments down the stretch, his impact hasn’t been bigger at any point in his career than it is now.

Murphy went from averaging 4.0 points and 3.1 rebounds as a sophomore last season to 10.4 points and 7.8 rebounds this year. He’s blocked 18 shots and dishes out 2.1 assists a game as well. It’s made for a night and day difference for the talented forward this year and a much happier lifestyle, too.

“It took maturity and trust in my teammates and coaching staff,” Murphy said. “They keep me uplifted. It’s more than physical how you are on the court, and they take care of me outside of the court. I’m good mentally and I’ve grown tremendously.”

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