Andy Murphy's voice was no longer his voice. It was robotic, emerging from a computer as he sat in his Batesville, Indiana, home in June 2021 using an eye-gaze device that let him form sentences by focusing on words, letters and phrases on a screen.

"Every 90 minutes, someone is diagnosed, and someone passes away from ALS," said Murphy, then 43 years old. "At any given time, there are about 30,000 people living with ALS in the United States. The more people know, the better chance to take this from terminal to treatable."

Murphy knew as the computer spoke those words for him in 2021 that it didn't quite capture the desperation. He knew ALS wasn't treatable. It wasn't going to end with him as the victor. And it didn't.

He died in July at 45 years old.

Yet, Murphy had made it clear before his death that he wanted to fight for those who came after him, who were battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that attacks motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord, which results in the wasting away of muscle, loss of movement and eventual paralysis.

Murphy wanted to create a legacy that would live on in research against the brutal disease that took him from his wife, Brooke, and his two children Kerrigan and Drew.

Before he died, Murphy -- who was an Indiana University basketball manager during Bob Knight's final four years as coach -- helped to create Hoops4ALS, an organization that unites basketball coaches, players and fans to raise awareness for ALS and promote research.

Tuesday night, Murphy's legacy will live on with the first Hoops4ALS game plays out on college basketball's big stage as Duke takes on Pittsburgh. The second Hoops4ALS game will be played Jan. 20, again between Duke and Pitt.

For each of the basketball games, the teams will wear Hoops4ALS warmup shirts and the coaching staffs, managers and basketball personnel will wear Hoops4ALS pins. Both venues will feature in-house announcements and scoreboard displays, while ALS patients, caregivers and researchers will be recognized on court during timeouts.

"When Andy was first diagnosed, he made a bucket list," his brother P.J. Murphy, a Hoops4ALS committee member, told IndyStar on Monday. "There were trips but, most importantly, he wanted to make an impact. He wanted to raise awareness of ALS."

'Get that checked out sooner rather than later'

It was the summer of 2019 when Murphy noticed something was wrong. He talked to his wife, Brooke, about this strange, frustrating phenomenon taking over his body.

Each day that passed, tiny bit by tiny bit, his speech worsened. By the time a family birthday party at a bowling alley came in August, the rest of his family was alarmed.

"He was really slurring his speech," said P.J. Murphy. "We were thinking maybe a stroke or something." P.J. told his brother: "You need to get that checked out sooner rather than later."

Murphy went to get it checked out and, after four months of doctors' appointments, tests and being pushed off by doctors, Murphy finally found a neurologist, Robert M. Pascuzzi in Indianapolis, who was willing to take his symptoms seriously.

Then they walked into Dr. Pascuzzi's office. "It's something you don't forget," Brooke said through tears in 2021.

Brooke remembers being so excited. It was the day after Christmas in 2019. They were on their way to Murphy's appointment, and they were finally, thankfully, going to get an answer. They celebrated by stopping to have lunch out first.

"I know what it is," the doctor told the Murphys. "He has motor neuron disease."

"And my first thought was, 'OK. Now that we know, let's fix it,'" said Brooke. "'What do we do?'"

"The problem is," Dr. Pascuzzi said somberly, "ALS doesn't have a cure."

An unsung ALS hero

The couple went home, and they grieved. Murphy was angry and sad at first. But then he accepted what had been handed to him. And he was grateful for the life he had. And he forged on.

Murphy made the most of his final years and months, fighting for ALS research and making memories with his family.

When Murphy died in July, his family mourned. And they celebrated his life.

"Andy was an avid IU fan, especially during his time as a student manager for Coach Knight. He loved following sports and sharing his knowledge about them," Murphy's obituary read. "Throughout his battle with ALS, Andy stayed true to his faith in God. He showed his strength of character, never complaining as he progressed.

"The most important and proudest part of Andy’s life was his kids. Becoming a dad and having his own family was the highlight of his life. He was a great father and husband, always putting his family and his faith first. He was an incredible model of perseverance in the face of the unimaginable and did so with an immense amount of love, patience and grace."

When P.J. learned not long ago what his brother had always wanted was going to finally happen, than an NCAA basketball game was going to be a Hoops4ALS game, he was thrilled.

And his brother's death turned from bitter to sweet. It was sweet because Murphy had always relished his time as an IU basketball manager. He relished his time with Knight. And he would have loved seeing his cause being highlighted under the bright lights of a college basketball game.

To help honor Murphy and his fight for ALS awareness scan the QR code below and donate or visit Hoops4ALS.com.

Follow IndyStar sports reporter Dana Benbow on X: @DanaBenbow. Reach her via email: dbenbow@indystar.com.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Hoops4ALS: Ex-IU basketball manager dies from ALS, lives on at Duke-Pitt