Steven Pearl, Keyshawn Hall Address Absence of Auburn Forward KeShawn Murphy

Though the Auburn Tigers trounced South Alabama, 78-67, star forward KeShawn Murphy was notably absent from the matchup. It was revealed before the game that Murphy had not shown up to practice this past Monday and would thus not be playing in the USA game, and following the game, Keyshawn Hall took to social media to dispel any negative rumors.

“He ain’t quit on the team,” he said. “just personal reason he still apart of our team, But Appreciate you bro these people just chat remember they hold flowers in one hand and a stone in the other hand!! Been knew what it is and these people don’t even know the behind the scenes But all love.”

However, head coach Steven Pearl indicated postgame that he and the staff were unaware as to exactly why Murphy was unavailable, echoing the original report surrounding Murphy’s departure.

“Murph has decided to not play in these games, and I’m not sure why, but, listen, we love Murphy,” he said. “Have a lot of love for everything he’s done for us and his commitments to this program. Wish him well. Want him to still finish up academically, but I got nothing but love for Muprh.

“He came here and wanted to try to make history for Auburn, and he just ultimately decided not to play. So, just going to pour into the guys that are here and want to hoop.”

Auburn basketball coach Steven Pearl was not sure why KeShawn Murphy decided to leave the program before the NIT. | Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Without Murphy, Hall played all 40 minutes of the South Alabama matchup, as the Tigers are now down to just three big men, two of whom are freshmen: Hall, Sebastian Williams-Adams and Filip Jović. In those 40 minutes, Hall accumulated 41 points on 6-15 shooting with six rebounds, an assist and two blocks.

What happens next for the Auburn Tigers? Don't miss out on any news and analysis! Take a second, sign up for our free newsletter, and get breaking Auburn Tigers news delivered to your inbox daily!

Murphy transferred to Auburn after three years at Mississippi State ahead of this season and has been quite impressive for the Tigers in the time since. He averaged 10.7 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists in his final season of college, culminating in a season-high 25-point performance against Kentucky back in February.

Meanwhile, reserve Kaden Magwood scored a season-high 14 points in 17 minutes of play off the bench, having not played since Jan. 6 against Texas A&M and having not play that many minutes since Nov. 19 against Jackson State.

“Against that zone, you need guys that can knock down shots,” Pearl said. “... Kaden’s been really good in practice and stayed right and stayed ready. He’s got all A’s right now, academically. I wanted to reward that.”