The Details: Andrews & Murray: Friends, Teammates, Brothers
By Mason Kelley
GoHuskies.com
Friends. Teammates. Brothers. Andrew Andrews, Dejounte Murray and the rest of the players on the Washington men’s basketball roster have built a bond that extends beyond the basketball floor.
For Andrews and Murray, their connection started with a chance meeting at a high school all-star game and built from there, through mutual respect between a player who has made the transition from high school to college and a prospect whose journey is just beginning.
“We’ve been building a bond,” Murray said.
The duo, one of more prolific tandems in the Pac-12, is in the middle of a breakout campaign. This has been a season they have talked about often since Murray’s senior year at Rainier Beach when Andrews would visit the Seattle school to catch his future teammate’s games.
To see Andrews in the stands was important for Murray. Simply showing up provided a special message.
“He was coming to show his support and it meant a lot, just to know he was supporting me when I was in high school,” Murray said.
For Andrews, well, he was simply doing what he was taught. He was following the lead of Washington coach Lorenzo Romar.
“It’s a big part of the loyalty and support you get when you come to UW,” Andrews said. “It all starts with coach Romar.”
Without being prompted, Andrews started listing off surprise visits from his coach. For example, when Romar heard about a graduation party in Portland for Andrews last summer, the coach was there. When Andrews needed to get a ticket to Washington’s graduation to his uncle the day of the event, Romar walked to a nearby gas station to make sure the uncle could get into the ceremony.
“Seeing him do those types of things and being so committed to the team and individuals makes me want to do the same thing for these guys,” Andrews said.
By following Romar’s lead, Andrews is setting an example for his younger teammates. The senior has taken on the role of lead dog in the Huskies’ pack. Just don’t call him the older brother in this basketball family.
“Let’s just say I’m just the older guy in the situation,” Andrews said with a smile. “It’s been great.”
As guards, Andrews and Murray spend practices working to ensure each player is in a position to maximize their talent each time Washington takes the floor.
“He pushes me just like I’m sure I push him,” Andrews said.
When asked to explain the differences in way the duo plays, Andrews said he was recently talking to a friend back home in Oregon about that very thing. They started talking about a pair of former high school hoops standouts from Washington.
When Abdul Gaddy (who played at Washington) and Avery Bradley (who now plays for the Boston Celtics) were teammates at Bellarmine Prep, they earned the nickname “Fire and Ice.”
“Abdul was a smooth guy who could get what he wanted in high school,” Andrews said. “Avery was just all energy coming out and locking people up.”
The Washington senior brought up Gaddy and Bradley, because Andrews sees a little “Fire and Ice” in the way his game fits with Murray’s.
“I would say we both have that same kind of dynamic, except we both have that fire in us, which makes us tough to guard,” Andrews said.
That dynamic has caused a breakout season for both the senior and the freshman. Andrews is averaging 21.7 points per game and has hit the 30-point plateau five times – second most by a player in the NCAA this season. Murray, on the other hand, is averaging 14.7 points per game, finishing in double figures in 13 of 19 Washington games this season.
As a duo, Andrews and Murray have combined for 76 percent of the Huskies’ scoring through seven Pac-12 games.
With the Huskies heading into Thursday’s game at UCLA with a 13-6 record (5-2 Pac-12), Murray, Andrews and Romar are all in contention for postseason Pac-12 awards – freshman of the year, player of the year and coach of the year.
If they were to sweep all three, well, “It’s something we’d be proud of, but we know that is just our hard work being rewarded,” Murray said. “We’re just going to keep working hard. We’ll just keep pushing.”
Andrews took it one step further, saying that individual accolades are the byproduct of team wins.
“Nothing individual will happen if you don’t win,” he said. “Once you win, the credit comes.”
Andrews used his younger teammate as an example.
“You look at his (Murray’s) numbers, he should be in the conversation for top freshman, not only in the conference, but in the country,” Andrews said. “The only guy putting up numbers like him is Ben Simmons. If we keep playing well, you’ll see him in that discussion a lot more.”
So, for the teammates whose pairing has been years in the making, the goal for the second half of the Pac-12 schedule is simple – just win.
Win for their teammates. Win for their friends. Win for their brothers.
“As long as we focus on winning, the rest will take care of itself,” Andrews said.
