Northwest Nazarene men's basketball head coach Paul Rush and his staff have announced the addition of Aaron Murphy to the Nighthawks program heading into the 2022-23 year.

Murphy is a 6'7" power forward from Tracy, California. He played at Modesto Christian in high school and spent the past three seasons at UC Davis, but comes to Nampa with three years of eligibility remaining due to a redshirt year in 2019-20 and the COVID year in 2020-21. He is also the younger brother of current Nighthawks big man Gabriel Murphy.

"Aaron is a high level athlete, defender, and playmaker, and we are excited about adding him to our Nighthawks family," said Rush. "Aaron was one of the top players in Northern California when he played with Modesto Christian HS and the Lakeshow AAU program. His strength around the basket will allow him to guard any post player in our conference while also being able to step out and make plays on the perimeter. Aaron brings the same energy, excitement, and joy that the NNU community has enjoyed with his older brother Gabe over the last four years."

Murphy appeared in 24 games last year for UC Davis, scoring 50 points and pulling down 64 rebounds in 10.9 minutes per game. He had a season-best eight points in a win over UC San Diego on Jan. 8 and then a season-best seven rebounds against Pacific on Dec. 1. He was also named to the 2021-22 Big West Conference All-Academic Team.

Through his four years at Modesto Christian, the Crusaders had a combined record of 109-23 and 52-1 in conference play while winning three league titles. During his senior season, he earned All-State and District Player of the Year honors while leading the Crusaders to the finals of the section championships.

"It feels like home," said Murphy on what helped him make his choice to play for the Nighthawks.

Murphy is one of five freshmen and two transfers that are joining the program this year, including Nathan Perez and Easton Reagan. The rest of the class will be released one-by-one on nnusports.com in the coming days.