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Johnny Murdock helped the 1992 Missouri State Bears reach the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in six years. The program has been one time since. (Missouri State Athletics)<\/p>\nOPINION|<\/p>\n
It seems fitting that Johnny Murdock\u2019s induction into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame came during a week that most Missouri State eyes were focused on the football team\u2019s participation in its first bowl game as a Football Bowl Subdivision member.<\/p>\n
Add the fact that the Bears\u2019 head football coach left for another job a few days prior to the Xbox Bowl and his replacement was hired a few hours before kickoff. The news cycle clearly blurred Murdock\u2019s recognition as one of the Bears\u2019 all-time athletic greats.<\/p>\n
Then again, it\u2019s always felt like Murdock has been one of the most overlooked players in Missouri State basketball history. He came along at a time that saw the greatest coach in program history leave after Murdock\u2019s freshman season and, despite glowing individual accomplishments, Murdock\u2019s career closed with little fanfare as the teams his junior and seniors seasons had mediocre records.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe main reason I came to Missouri State was Coach Spoon (Charlie Spoonhour) and the main reason I stayed was the guys that I was playing with,\u201d Murdock said during last week\u2019s visit to Springfield for his induction. \u201cI don\u2019t know if that was the best decision, but at the time, it seemed like it was. And I don\u2019t really have any regrets.\u201d<\/p>\n
More than three decades after concluding his career, Murdock remains fourth on the school\u2019s career scoring list (1,834 points). Forty times from 1991-95 he scored 20 or more points, and his 266 3-pointers are second to Blake Ahearn in program history. Three times he made eight 3-pointers in a game with Kevin Ault the only other player to make that many, doing it once.<\/p>\n
A relentless competitor on both ends, Murdock played more minutes (3,995) than anyone in a Bears\u2019 uniform and, despite being known as a scorer and shooter, is 10th in school history with 367 assists.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Johnny Murdock helped the 1992 Missouri State Bears reach the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in six years. The program has been one time since. (Missouri State Athletics)<\/p>\n
Tim Axley, a junior teammate when Murdock was a freshman, said Murdock might have been underrated because he was understated in going about his business.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a smooth, silent killer,\u201d Axley said. \u201cHe had a balanced package that made him hard to guard. Even as a freshman, no moment was too big for him.\u201d<\/p>\n
A late signee with the Bears in the spring of 1991 out of Wichita South High School, Murdock cracked the starting lineup before the midpoint of his freshman season. He helped Missouri State win its only MVC Tournament championship that season and earn an NCAA Tournament berth, its fifth in a six-season stretch.<\/p>\n
Axley pointed out this was on a team that was almost completely re-made by Spoonhour, a mix of junior college newcomers along with freshmen and a few returning lettermen.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe flipped almost the whole damn roster that year, feeling each other out,\u201d Axley said. \u201cLittle by little that summer, this guy (Murdock) was killin\u2019 everyone \u2014 and not saying much while he did it.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s exactly the way Murdock wanted to go about his business, just playing the game the right way while keeping a poker face. But his toughness stood out in the biggest moments.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the conference tournament, I remember getting an elbow in the head in the semifinal game against Illinois State,\u201d Murdock said. \u201cI got like five stitches at halftime and played the rest of that game. I remember our older guys like Jackie (Crawford) and Tony (Graves), they did a lot in pulling us through that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Later that game, which the Bears won in overtime, Murdock dropped a nifty pass to the team\u2019s lone senior, Andre Rigsby, for a key basket.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost young players would try to be the hero,\u201d Axley said.<\/p>\n
The Bears went on to an NCAA Regional in Dayton, Ohio, against Michigan State. After playing the favored Spartans close for about 35 minutes, Missouri State fell 61-54. It\u2019s an outcome that Murdock, who scored eight in the game, still winces about.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just always feel like we gave that game away,\u201d Murdock said. \u201cI think we were just so excited about just making the tournament that we didn\u2019t play our game. We were not fully into that moment while we were playing. I truly think that\u2019s why we lost.\u201d<\/p>\n
The success under Spoonhour came to an abrupt end when the coach left for Saint Louis University a few weeks later. Mark Bernsen was elevated to head coach and Missouri State advanced to the National Invitation Tournament quarterfinals the next season, but Murdock said things never were quite the same.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Bears were a combined 28-26 Murdock\u2019s final two seasons, the gap between the Spoonhour and Steve Alford coaching eras. He admits sometimes wondering \u201cwhat if?\u201d he had followed Spoonhour or explored other transfer options. But unlike today\u2019s college basketball world, where players can transfer and immediately be eligible, you had to sit out a season back then.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Murdock said he came to Missouri State to play for Spoonhour and recalled the coach \u2014 who rarely played freshmen back in the day \u2014 telling him he would play if he earned it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wanted to work hard and impress him,\u201d Murdock said of Spoonhour. \u201cAnd my big thing was, if I\u2019m playing as hard as everybody else, I should have a chance of playing. I didn\u2019t want to have to go to a school that would say, \u2018I don\u2019t play freshmen.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember coach Spoon being really hard on us, especially at the beginning of the season and through conditioning. The juco guys were throwing up and passing out, and it was really, really hard. And I think that was a big factor, how hard we worked and how far we went.\u201d<\/p>\n
Murdock now works for the Maize (Kan.) school district and also officiates high school basketball in the Wichita area. His oldest son, Jordan, is head basketball coach at Kansas Wesleyan, an NAIA school in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference. His youngest son, Johnny Jr., played for Jordan at Kansas Wesleyan and his daughter, Johnna, plays middle school basketball in Wichita.<\/p>\n
Murdock said it\u2019s only natural to wonder how his career could have been different. He admits he was \u201cvery close\u201d to transferring to Saint Louis, but is happy he didn\u2019t and that his legacy in a Bears\u2019 uniform was cemented.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As for what part of his game he was most proud of, Murdock said it was defense.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI was probably overlooked for defense, being more known for my scoring,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I think I was just an all-around player., and I really prided myself in playing defense.<\/p>\n
\u201cCoach Spoon had the faith in me that every team we played when I was a freshman, he put me on their best guy. To me, that was like, \u2018Oh, my God, I got to hold this guy. I\u2019ve got to do a good job because coach Spoon is counting on me.\u2019 And for the most part, I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Missouri State men\u2019s basketball top 10 career scorers<\/p>\n
1. Daryel Garrison (1971-75) \u2013 1,975<\/p>\n
2. Kyle Weems (2008-12) \u2013 1,868<\/p>\n
3. Curtis Perry (1966-70) \u2013 1,835<\/p>\n
4. Johnny Murdock (1991-95) \u2013 1,834<\/p>\n
5. Danny Bolden (1963-67) \u2013 1,718<\/p>\n
6. Danny Moore (1996-99) \u2013 1,691<\/p>\n
7. Chuck Williams (1967-71) \u2013 1,687<\/p>\n
8. Blake Ahearn (2003-07) \u2013 1,677<\/p>\n
9. Jimmie Dull (1974-78) \u2013 1,532<\/p>\n
10. Kevin Ault (1996-2000) \u2013 1,508<\/p>\n
Missouri Sports Hall of Fame Winter Inductions<\/p>\n
Johnny Murdock, Missouri State basketball<\/p>\n
Ricky Paulding, Missouri basketball<\/p>\n
Mike Wilson, basketball coach<\/p>\n
Melissa McFerrin, Cassville High School and Mizzou basketball player, basketball coach<\/p>\n
Randy Roark, Lebanon High School wrestling coach<\/p>\n
Forsyth High School 1973 basketball state championship team<\/p>\n
Purdy High School girls\u2019 basketball era, 1980-82<\/p>\n
Marionville High School boys\u2019 basketball state championship teams<\/p>\n
Clinton High School wrestling era, 1990-94<\/p>\n
Filbert Five honorees<\/p>\n
Karissa McCarter Corpeny, Kickapoo High School, Arkansas State, Missouri S&T basketball<\/p>\n
Michelle Holman, Dadeville High School, Southwest Baptist University basketball<\/p>\n
Shannon Bigelow Pulsipher, Crocker High School, Mineral Area College basketball<\/p>\n
Shelley Garrison Rozean, Clever High School, College of the Ozarks basketball<\/p>\n
Stephanie Lansdown Shelto, Seymour High School, Evangel University basketball<\/p>\n
Curtis Hargus, Hillcrest High School, Drury University basketball<\/p>\n
Collins Harris, Jefferson City High School Drury University basketball<\/p>\n
Barry Kemp, Evangel University basketball<\/p>\n
Anthony Welcome, Nixa High School, Johnson County Community College, Drury, William Jewell basketball<\/p>\n
Scott Welsh, Willard High School basketball\u00a0<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Lyndal Scranton is a Springfield native who has covered sports in the Ozarks for more than 35 years, witnessing nearly every big sports moment in the region during the last 50 years. The Missouri Sports Hall of Famer, Springfield Area Sports Hall of Famer and live-fire cooking enthusiast also serves as PR Director for Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Missouri and is co-host of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast. Contact him at Lscranton755@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @LyndalScranton. More by Lyndal Scranton<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"OPINION| It seems fitting that Johnny Murdock\u2019s induction into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame came during a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":69538,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[36630,12011,178,180,179,12013],"class_list":{"0":"post-69537","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-scranton","8":"tag-johnny-murdock","9":"tag-missouri-state","10":"tag-scranton","11":"tag-scranton-headlines","12":"tag-scranton-news","13":"tag-topsports1"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69537"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69537\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/69538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1766586849_117_Lyndal_Scranton_Square-e1643754217713.jpg\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLyndal Scranton\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n