Josh Embry
Sports Editor
jembry3@murraystate.edu
Sophomore forward Alexis Burpo’s play in the second half of this season has led to her sudden rise as the do-it-all player the Murray State women’s basketball team envisioned when she first stepped foot on campus.
Burpo cannot recall when she first started playing basketball but she did play in junior leagues and played for Hickman County’s high school basketball team as an eighth grader.
“I really don’t remember when I started [playing],” Burpo said. “I remember playing Upward basketball and going from that [to] then playing middle school. I then played high school ball as an eighth grader at my old school in Hickman County.”
Before her freshman year, Burpo and her family moved roughly 40 miles east to Murray. Here, she attended Murray High School.
At Murray High School, Burpo became reacquainted with two other players she had met and played with before in AAU basketball: sophomore guards Macey Turley and Lex Mayes.
“Macey moved [to Murray] in seventh grade and then Lex moved the same year as me—my freshman year,” Burpo said. “I played with Macey on some AAU teams and then my seventh grade year, all three of us played together. We all knew each other.”
The three teammates quickly became best friends as well as a terrifying trio to go against on the basketball court. Burpo was the inside player of the three, leading the team in rebounds her last three seasons and shooting over 52% each season.
By the end of her high school career at Murray High, Burpo amassed over 1,500 points (11.4 ppg) and nearly 1,000 rebounds (seven rpg). She helped the Tigers win three regional titles and finish in the final four of the KHSAA Girls Sweet 16 Basketball Tournament twice.
Everyone knew Burpo was a good player coming out of high school, but there were questions about whether or not she had what it took to play at the Division I level.
Burpo received offers from other schools, but when Head Coach Rechelle Turner, who was the head coach of Murray High during Burpo’s freshman and sophomore year, offered Burpo the chance to play for Murray State, she could not turn down the opportunity to play with her old coach and stay in Murray.
“I [chose Murray State because of] Turner and, also, I just wanted to be closer to home,” Burpo said. “Even if I didn’t come to Murray State and went somewhere else, I would still want to be close to my family and friends.”
Another reason Burpo decided to be a Racer was because both Turley and Mayes were offered the chance to play for Murray State. The trio wanted to continue to play together and the three signed with Murray State on the same day.
When Burpo signed with Murray State, she emphasized how important it was for her to play under Turner and be on the court with Turley and Mayes for four more years.
“I wanted to be coached by Coach Turner and I wanted to play with Lex and Macey for four more years,” Burpo said in 2017.
During her freshman year, Burpo showed flashes of solid play and averaged 19.2 mpg, while earning 12 starts as well. She finished the season with averages of 3.8 ppg and 3.8 rpg and struggled shooting the ball compared to her high school days, as she shot just 41.2%.
Burpo said it was an adjustment from the high school level to Division I in regards to the court size and talent differential.
“It was a faster pace and just getting used to the length of the floor and also getting used to the players [was an adjustment],” Burpo said. “Everyone is bigger [and] stronger so that was an adjustment too.”
Entering this season, Burpo had greater expectations and responsibility placed on her by Turner and by herself.
Burpo started this season coming off the bench and played well, but after four games she was averaging just 4.3 ppg and 3.8 rpg. In the Racers’ fifth game, she earned her first start of the season and had her best game, as she finished with 12 points, nine rebounds and four assists against Christian Brothers University.
Burpo continued to play well throughout the ensuing games, but on Jan. 11 against Tennessee Tech, she showed her underlying potential. In the game, she had career highs in points, rebounds and assists with 18, 14 and six, respectively.
Following the game, Turner said Burpo proved in that game that she had what it took to be a solid player at the Division I level.
“That’s the Alexis Burpo that deserves for people to get off her back about not being good enough to play Division I basketball,” Turner said. “She had 18 [points] and 14 [rebounds] against one of the best teams in the conference and she kept us in the game defensively as well as offensively all night long.”
Since then, Burpo has continued to dominate the OVC with her inside scoring and rebounding, as she averages nearly a double-double in conference play (12.2 ppg and 9.4 rpg).
Burpo has continued to eclipse her career highs throughout the season. She has reached the 20-point threshold four times so far and collected a career-high 15 rebounds against SIUE on Feb. 1.
Additionally, Burpo has evolved from merely being an inside player to becoming one of the team’s primary ball handlers. Although she has struggled at times being the head of the offense, Burpo continues to serve adequately and has gotten better at it with each passing game.
Burpo earned the OVC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week in early February because of her stellar play. Turner said if she continues to play so well, she might receive votes for being a member of an All-OVC Team.
“I told you, when she consistently does this then we can start talking about her being an OVC-type player,” Turner said. “Well, she is consistently starting to do it.”
Burpo said her improved play stems from her increased confidence in herself and from her coaches and teammates.
“I would say confidence [has helped me play better] but also belief in my coaches and teammates because they want me to drive and look for people to shoot it,” Burpo said.
Assistant Coach Amber Guffey said Burpo’s confidence in herself is the reason she has improved so much from her freshman to sophomore year.
“Burpo is probably our most improved player from last year to now to even in conference play,” Guffey said. “I think she just has more confidence. She knows she can do it. She has proven she can produce at this level whereas people probably doubted that she could, but I think she has done a good job.”
Burpo’s teammates are her biggest cheerleaders, as evidenced when Mayes talked so highly of Burpo’s rising play following a game where she played especially well.
“Oh my gosh, it is amazing,” Mayes said. “You knew it was coming and [she] just needed her time and here it is. I love to see it because I do not think there is anybody who can stop her when she gets her mind set and she wants to go off.”
With Turley out indefinitely because of a knee injury, Burpo has increased responsibility and added pressure going into the final two games of the regular season as the Racers are currently ranked in the final tournament spot in the OVC standings.
One of Burpo’s main goals before her time at Murray State is finished is to win an OVC Championship, and her stellar play and leadership will be crucial for the Racers’ chances of obtaining her goal in March.
Burpo’s ascension from an average player to a key cog has been nothing short of a pleasant surprise for her fellow players, coaches and fans alike.
“If anybody has taken a huge jump from their freshman to sophomore year, it has been her,” Turner said. “I couldn’t be more proud of who she has become this year not only as a basketball player, but as a confident young woman and that’s going to really pay dividends going forward for us. She just continues to shine each and every night.”