We present a diversity multiplexing tradeoff (DMT) optimal tree pruning sphere decoding algorithm which visits merely a single branch of the search tree of the sphere decoding (SD) algorithm, while maintaining the DMT optimality at high signal to noise ratio (SNR) regime. The search tree of the sphere decoding algorithm is pruned via intersecting one dimensional spheres with the hypersphere of the SD algorithm, and the radii are chosen to guarantee the DMT optimality. In contrast to the conventional DMT optimal SD algorithm, which is known to have a polynomial complexity at high SNR regime, we show that the proposed method achieves the DMT optimality by solely visiting a single branch of the search tree at high SNR regime. The simulation results are corroborated with the claimed characteristics of the algorithm in two different scenarios.