HUNTINGTON, WV -- 2017 SG DeAundra Murphy is one of the best remaining players in the state of West Virginia. He is the leader of a good Huntington St. Joseph team and is currently leading the state of West Virginia in scoring at 29.9 PPG to go along with 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals.

Coming off a state championship season where he was one of 3 major class of 2017 players for a very good team, things look a little different this time around. Keith Clemons (now at Wesley Christian) and John Dawson (now at Huntington) are no longer around and Deaundra has taken the load of the offense onto his shoulders.

Murphy provides versatility on the perimeter, where he can play on or off the ball. He scores the ball in bunches, primarily on jumpshots but can also attack the cup off the bounce. This guard is a very talented offensive player and that should translate to the college level.

Currently his recruitment is a little all over the place, in a good way. He reportedly has offers from Radford, Fairmont State, Alderson Broaddus, and Salem International to go along with interest from Marshall, Akron, VMI, Lincoln Memorial, and Florida Southern. He hasn’t begun to trim things down, and is still open to the process. “I’m just looking for a school with good academics and that feels like home.”

St. Joe’s record stands at 12-10, but don’t count them out. “If we play tough more on the defensive end, our offense is strong. If we play our style of basketball, we can beat anyone.” With DeAundra leading them, don’t be surprised to see St. Joseph make a push towards the state tournament in a region that hasn’t quite sorted itself yet.

We’ve been watching him for a few years and think he has a chance to be a good player down the road. At times this summer, playing for the MATTS Mustangs alongside WKU signee Tay Hollingsworth, he was awesome and scored the ball with ease.

Photo: Sholten Singer/The Herald-Dispatch