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Ole Miss' Matthew Murrell and Angel Baker named finalists for Howell and Gillom trophies

11by:Jake Thompson•02/23/23•

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Ole Miss guard Matthew Murrell

The top men’s and women’s college basketball player in Mississippi will be announced in a couple week and Ole Miss has a finalist for each.

On Thursday the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame announced the finalists for the Howell Trophy and Gillom Trophy. The Rebels were represented by Matthew Murrell and Angel Baker.

Murrell was named a finalist for the Howell Trophy, which is awarded to the state’s top men’s player. He joins Mississippi State’s Tolu Smith and Southern Mississippi’s Austin Crowley as the three finalists. Crowley spent his first three seasons at Ole Miss before hitting the transfer portal and ending up at Southern Miss.

The junior Ole Miss guard is averaging 14.7 points per game and leading the Rebels in scoring despite missing three games after suffering an injury at Arkansas last month. Murrell is also averaging 3.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.

Created at the end of the 2004-05 season, there have been six Ole Miss players to win the Howell Trophy. The most recent was Devontae Shuler in 2021. Marshall Henderson was the first Rebel to win the Howell Trophy, earning the award in 2013 and was the first of five straight Ole Miss players to win it.

Baker is looking to become the second Ole Miss player in history to win the Gillom Trophy.

Since the trophy’s inception after the 2007-08 season no Rebel player had won the Gillom Trophy until Shakira Austin did in 2021. Austin then won it a second straight time last year.

Baker would be the third straight Ole Miss player to win after being shutout the first 13 years of the Gillom Trophy’s existence.

Joining Baker as finalists are Jessika Carter of Mississippi State and Dominique Davis of Southern Mississippi.

The senior guard leads Ole Miss in scoring with 15.1 points per game. Baker is also averaging 5.7 rebounds.

Finalists were selected by a panel of statewide media who cover college basketball, with the same panel tasked to select this year’s winner which will be announced during a luncheon and presentation on March 6 at the Golden Moon Casino and Pearl River Resort. The event is open to the public and tickets are available to purchase online.

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