Ole Miss leading scorer Matthew Murrell is withdrawing from the upcoming NBA draft and will return for the 2023-24 season.
Meanwhile, former Auburn guard Allen Flanigan is also withdrawing his name from the NBA and committing to Ole Miss, his father told CBSSports.com on Tuesday.
Murrell brings his scoring average of 14.4 points per game to play under new head coach Chris Beard.
“After gathering feedback from my workouts and team personnel, I am going to continue to build my game at Ole Miss, so I am in the position I want to be in for the 2024 NBA draft,” Murrell told ESPN on Tuesday. “I know who I am as a player and how that can translate to the NBA.”
The 6-foot-4 Murrell also led the Rebels with 2.6 assists per game. Second-leading scorer Jaemyn Brakefield also is coming back next season.
Murrell is averaging 10.4 points in 89 career games (56 starts) at Ole Miss.
Flanigan entered the transfer portal earlier this month and speculation immediately zeroed in on him transferring to Ole Miss to play for Beard; Flanigan’s father, Wes, recently left the Auburn coaching staff to become an assistant coach in Oxford.
The 6-foot-6 guard graduated and has one season of eligibility remaining.
Flanigan averaged 10.1 points and 5.0 rebounds in 34 games (19 starts) for the Tigers in 2022-23. He averages 8.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 114 games (69 starts) over four seasons.
Flanigan was an All-SEC selection in 2020-21 but suffered a torn Achilles ahead of the 2021-22 season.
–Field Level Media
