Morris, St. Viator winning tough
It's been quite the week for D.J. Morris.
In Monday's season opener against Walter Lutheran, St. Viator's point guard broke his nose for the sixth time.
Just over a minute into Friday's contest against Wheeling, Morris had to be removed from the game when he was bleeding on the court after taking an elbow to the nose. And with 1:02 left in the first half, Morris had to leave the game again when he ran into a hard screen that resulted in his ribs being popped out of place.
But the senior had enough in him to score a game-high 13 points in leading the Lions to a 62-44 win over the Wildcats in the St. Viator Thanksgiving Basketball Tournament.
"He's our leader and he's a tough kid," said St. Viator coach Mike Howland. "He takes a lot of shots but he gets back up every time. He'll be ready to go (Saturday night against Conant)."
Morris, who was heading to the doctor after the game to have his ribs popped back into place, embodied the toughness that enabled St. Viator (3-0) to force 19 first-half turnovers and stake them to a 19-3 lead after the first quarter.
"We've been focused on defense and our toughness," Morris said. "We want to get after people, and we don't care who it is. We're just going to play our game and run you out of the gym. That's what our identity is right now."
Stout defense from Mark Falotico (4 steals) and Ore Arogundade (3 steals) made it difficult for Wheeling (0-4) to get good looks early on. Arogundade had 6 of his 12 points in the big first quarter.
The rest of the way, however, the Wildcats desperately tried to claw their way back into the game. Chris Pierro's 3-pointer at the end of the first half sparked an 11-7 run.
"I thought (Wheeling) did a great job in those last three quarters," Howland said. "They played us pretty even and I think it's going to be a big boost for them."
Patrick Martin (11 points) hit 2 of the Lions' 10 3-pointers in the last minute of the third quarter, including a high archer from just shy of the half-court line at the buzzer, to put the team up 50-29.
Wheeling coach John Clancy was pleased with the play of Pierro and Lamont McPherson, who had a team-high 9 points and 7 rebounds.
"Our kids gained a wealth of experience," Clancy said of the team's four games this week. "We had a lot of young kids get time, and even our veterans were mostly JV guys last year so it was kind of trial by fire this week.
"In the long run, we're going to be better for what happened."
Highland Park 44, Conant 39: Leading 36-28 after three quarters, Conant scored just 3 points in the fourth quarter in a 44-39 loss to Highland Park in the St. Viator Thanksgiving Basketball Tournament.
Sean Bourke led the Cougars with 15 points while Robert Hudson added 13.
Jake Norcia poured in a game-high 28 points for the Giants.
Conant (2-1) closes out the tourney with a 5 p.m. Saturday game against St. Viator (3-0).