January 17, 2008
Morris is not minor at Piedmont High
There was Casey at the bat. This is about Casey on the hardwood. No, you won’t read about the Mudville nine here but Piedmont High instead. Plus, this Casey doesn’t strike out -- in fact, she strikes gold.
The athletic Morris is the product of a basketball family
That’s because guard Casey Morris has already been recognized for her on-court achievements, having accepted a scholarship offer from Coach Joanne Boyle of the California Golden Bears. Vanderbilt, various Pac-10 schools and others were also among her suitors.
Cal won out because it was "close to home but not too close and it’s a school that offers a good education," according to Morris. "Berkeley was always at the top of my list."
However, there is still the matter of winning the Bay Shore Athletic league this season and advancing to the state playoffs first.
Simply put, don’t discount a long Piedmont run because as Morris’ coach Bryan Gardere says, "Casey is one of the top five point guards ever to come out of northern California."
That high praise for the 5-foot-10 backcourter but genuinely so for someone who typically averages a double-double in scoring and rebounding each time out, gets about halfway there in both assists and steals and was the league player of the year last season.
Morris describes her best skill as "ballhandling under pressure." On the flip side, she’s working on developing greater strength in order to finish better, especially knowing how much more physical the game will be on the collegiate level.
"The ball is in her hands 90% of the time and she gets teammates involved," Gardere continued, "She’s not real vocal as her leadership style is action, getting it done. She’s aggressive, crafty and overall a playmaker for herself and her teammates. Her athleticism is superb."
Right now, Morris is on the bubble as a McDonald’s All-American selection, according to Gardere. The names of the actual picks will be announced at the end of February.
Morris comes from a basketball family. Older sister Chazny Morris was also a highly-lauded player who was part of a state championship team while at Piedmont High and is now a sophomore at University of Missouri-Kansas City, averaging 17.4 points per game so far this season. When asked about the player she most admires, Morris keeps it in the family saying "my sister Chazny for her being a role model for me."
Her academics are in order as Morris’ SAT score and grade point average are fine. Her plan is to major in the business and marketing field while at Cal and she would love to be working for Nike in some capacity after graduating.
Basketball runs in the family as Morris’ father attended Oakland Tech and played basketball there. He also coached the Young Soldiers and Scholars and Ballers boys club teams as well as a number of girls club teams.
"I’ve played [basketball] seemingly forever, it’s pretty much a part of my life" Morris says.
Especially so with at least four more years at Cal on the horizon and possibly more after that.