SJP's Morris nominated for Basketball Hall of Fame

Philadelphia, PA -- Former Temple University men's head basketball coach John Chaney announced the nomination of long-time city basketball coach and current St. Joseph's Prep bench boss Bill “Speedy” Morris to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Wednesday.

In his 44 years of coaching at the high school and college level, Morris has had nothing but success. At all five of his coaching stops, he has guided his team to a championship in his second year, often after taking over moribund programs. At Roman Catholic High School, where he began his career and spent 14 seasons as head coach, Morris won six championships and still holds the best winning percentage in school history. He then moved to Penn Charter where he led the team to 41 wins in two seasons, winning the league championship in his second season.

That began Morris’ 17 years coaching at the collegiate level. First, he took over the La Salle women’s basketball team. Like Roman and Penn Charter, he was immediately successful, winning 43 games and a conference championship in his second season, when the Explorers advanced to the NCAA Tournament. He then moved to take the head men’s position at La Salle, becoming the only coach in NCAA history to ever make the switch from women to men. With the men’s team, Morris continued his amazing success. He still has the most wins in school history and led the Explorers to four conference titles and six postseason appearances (four NCAA tournaments and two NIT tournaments).

In 2001, Morris returned to his roots in Philadelphia Catholic League basketball, taking over the reins of the Prep. In 2003, he won the first of back-to-back Catholic League titles, the school’s first in three decades. His 235 wins are the most in school history and the team won the school’s first PIAA district championship in 2012. Overall, his eight Catholic League titles rank him at the top of the record books and last year he became the all-time winningest high school coach in Philadelphia history. He is also in exclusive company with 904 career wins.

“Speedy’s success on the floor is obvious and legendary,” says Rev. George W. Bur, S.J., President of St. Joseph’s Prep. “On the court, he has made our program into a consistent winner, something that we had been unable to achieve over the first 80 years that we had basketball. Off the court, Speedy runs a solid program, one that we are very proud to be associated with. He has made the program into a family and incorporated the mission of our school into the mission of our team.”

Morris is a tireless supporter of Coaches vs. Cancer and has consistently been one of the group’s top area fundraisers. In addition, Speedy raises money for many area charities, mostly speaking without a stipend. He and his son Chris have performed more than two dozen comedy shows, with all proceeds benefitting a local charity.

Morris has received many honors over the past few years: Philadelphia Big Five Hall of Fame, Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame, La Salle University Athletics Hall of Fame, the Archdiocesan Hall of Fame the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame and the court was named in his honor at Roman Catholic. He is one of the most accomplished and honored coaches in one of the world’s greatest basketball cities.

Roman Catholic's Wayns makes USA Basketball Men's U18 National Team

-Courtesy of USA Basketball

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The USA Basketball Men's U18 National Team was announced today in Washington, D.C., and is a well-rounded 12-member squad that will look to defend the country's gold medal at the 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship July 14-18 in Formosa, Argentina.

Named to the USA squad were: Dominic Cheek (St. Anthony H.S. / Jersey City, N.J.); JaMychal Green (St. Jude H.S. / Montgomery, Ala.); Matt Humphrey (Hales Franciscian H.S / Chicago, Ill.); Ryan Kelly (Ravenscroft H.S. / Raleigh, N.C.); Malcolm Lee (John W. North H.S. / Riverside, Calif.); Leslie McDonald (Briarcrest H.S./ Memphis, Tenn.); Mason Plumlee (Christ H.S. / Arden, N.C.); Travis Releford (Bishop Miege H.S. / Shawnee Mission, Kan.); Kemba Walker (Rice H.S. / New York, N.Y.); Maalik Wayns (Roman Catholic H.S. / Philadelphia, Pa.); David Wear (Mater Dei H.S. / Santa Ana, Calif.) and Travis Wear (Mater Dei H.S. / Santa Ana, Calif).

For Lee, this was his third time being named to a USA Basketball team. He was previously a member of the 2007 USA Basketball Youth Development Festival White Team and the 2008 USA Junior National Select Team that competed in the '08 Nike Hoop Summit.

The members of the USA U18 squad, comprised of athletes born on or after Jan. 1, 1990, began their journey as one of 18 athletes who arrived in Washington to attend the USA U18 National Team Trials on July 1, and will remain in Washington through July 10 before departing for the 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship.

"The coaching staff is so pleased with the way the team is developing a sense of chemistry, a sense of team and we're also pleased with their willingness to work hard and get better each day," said USA and Davidson College head coach Bob McKillop. "They realize that this is an investment of a lot of their time, a lot of their energy, but they realize the dividend that they can create for themselves by becoming better basketball players. They also realize the dividend that is part of developing relationships. There are already relationships that are emerging after these seven days together that I think will be lifetime relationships, amongst the coaches and the players, the players and the coaches.

Virginia Commonwealth University head coach Anthony Grant and Georgetown University head coach John Thompson III are serving as assistant coaches.

The USA Men's U18 FIBA Americas Championship Team will continue training at the Washington Wizards' practice facility inside the Verizon Center today at 5:00 p.m. (EDT) and on Wednesday, July 9 (10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., EDT). Then on Thursday, July 10, the team will train at Georgetown University's McDonough Arena (10:00 a.m. EDT).

Featuring eight U18 national teams from North, South and Central America and the Caribbean, the 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship will qualify the top four finishing teams for the 2009 FIBA U19 World Championship, slated to be held July 2-12 in New Zealand.

Opening against Venezuela at 1:30 p.m. on July 14 in the first game of Group B preliminary play, the USA faces the Bahamas at 2:00 p.m. on July 15 and closes out preliminary round play against Puerto Rico at 6:00 p.m. on July 16. Group A features host Argentina, Canada, Mexico and Uruguay.

Following preliminary round play the top two teams in each group advance to the July 17 medal round semifinals and the gold medal game will be contested at 8:00 p.m. on July 18.

Defending FIBA Americas U18 Championship gold medalists, the USA men's teams boast of a sensational 29-1 overall record in this event and won gold in 1990, 1994, 1998, and most recently in 2006, when the United States played host to the FIBA Americas U18 Championship for the first time in San Antonio, Texas. The USA men's team also captured the bronze in 2002.

Roman Catholic's Wayns battling for spot on 2008 USA Basketball Men's U18 National Team

By John McMullen

(The Phanatic Magazine) - Roman Catholic's Maalik Wayns is one of 25 18-and-younger prep stars set to attend the 2008 USA Basketball Men's U18 National Team Trials, July 1-3 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.

The 25 athletes will compete for one of 12 roster spots on the 2008 Men's U18 National Team.

Athlete selections for the USA Basketball Trials were made by the USA Basketball Men's Collegiate Committee, chaired by Syracuse University head coach Jim Boeheim.

"We have the best young players in the country participating in the trials and we've assembled an outstanding coaching staff to coach with them," said Boeheim. "The USA Basketball Men's Collegiate Committee did an outstanding job of identifying a tremendous group of young players who will compete for a roster position on the USA Basketball U18 National Team."

Following trials, the Men's Collegiate Committee is expected to announce the 12-member USA U18 National Team roster, plus alternates. The selected finalists will remain in Washington for the July 4-10 training camp. The USA squad will then depart for the 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship For Men, July 14-18 in Formosa, Argentina.