Virginia snags Rice transfer Trey Murphy
One of the top sit-out transfers found within the portal this spring, Trey Murphy has decided on where he will complete his college career beginning in the fall. The 6-foot-8 shot maker that leaves the Rice program after two seasons committed to Virginia on Monday.
“I really connected with Coach (Tony) Bennett and the staff,” Murphy told Rivals.com. “It truly was a gut feeling decision and it felt like it was just the right choice.”
Murphy chose the Cavaliers over Houston, Pitt and Villanova. A 6-foot-8 wing-forward that can play a variety of spots along the perimeter and some in the frontcourt, Murphy has grown over three inches since graduating from high school and possesses great mismatch qualities and a shooting stroke that should be relied upon in Charlottesville.
'I see myself fitting in as a big, versatile wing that will be able to play multiple positions and guard multiple positions,” Murphy said regarding his outlook at UVA. “Coming off pin-downs, isolation mismatches and things of that nature.”
The North Carolina native will likely sit out next season with two years to play thereafter; he will not ask for a waiver to play immediately. He is coming off a season in which he averaged 13.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game, while making close to 37-percent of his shots from beyond the arc. He has made 139 3-pointers throughout his two-year college career.
After next season, Virginia will lose two of its bigger wings to graduation in the form of Tomas Woldetensae and Sam Hauser. Thanks to Murphy’s size, shooting and potential growth that could be seen during his redshirt year over the winter, the drop-off should not be severe in feeling one of the two holes that will be left. Expect for UVA to continue to scour the guard market in the 2021 class, and remain heavily entrenched within the recruitment of four-star center Efton Reid.