Morris is winningest Catholic boys' basketball coach

Back in the day, Speedy Morris and Bud Gardler used to take their wives on double dates together. They've long been close friends, respected colleagues.

Call it fitting, or "ironic" as current Cardinal O'Hara coach Tim Kelly put it. Regardless of adjectives or friendships, Morris - the legendary Philadelphia hoops coach who has been at St. Joseph's Prep for 10 years - just one-upped Gardler, O'Hara's former longtime coach.

Monday afternoon, the Hawks defeated the Lions, 55-38, making Morris the Philadelphia Catholic League's all-time winningest coach, surpassing Gardler against his former team.

Morris, 68, now sits with a career PCL record of 561 wins and 146 losses in 24 years in the league with Roman Catholic and the Prep. In 43 years of coaching high school and college, he has amassed a record of 883-380.

"To beat his record," Morris said, "it's very meaningful. . . . There are a lot of terrific coaches in this league. There are a lot of terrific coaches in this league now. It's an honor to be No. 1."

Morris has won a combined eight league titles, including two at the Hawks' helm in 2003 and '04. He was inducted into the Big Five Hall of Fame in 2010, and last season set the Prep's mark for most wins.

He would not have broken the record if it weren't for steady, balanced play.

The Prep got down early behind a barrage of O'Hara three-pointers (four in the first quarter), but held the Lions to 11 total points in the second and third quarters.

The Hawks had 15 assists and two turnovers. Sophomore Steve Vasturia led all scorers with 25 points on 8-for-10 shooting, including five threes. Gene Williams chipped in 15 for the Hawks and Miles Overton added 10 points, five assists, and seven rebounds.

Sean Mayo accounted for nearly half of the Lions' offensive output, with 18 points.

Kelly, who played and coached under Gardler and regards him as his mentor, is also in awe of Morris.

"I want to emulate him," said Kelly, whose team fell to 1-10 in the league. "I have so much respect for the way he runs his program and the way his teams play. I use his teams as an example in practice for how I want my teams to play."

"Being coached by Speedy is just a blessing, really," said Overton, the son of former NBAer Doug Overton who played under Morris at La Salle. "Just being a part of the win, being in the history books next to his name, is a good feeling."

Senior cocaptain Mike Fee said the team hugged Morris in the locker room after the game and presented the coach with the game ball. Said Fee: "It feels good to at least give something back because he's done so much for me."

Temple head coach Fran Dunphy was in attendance early in the game to scout Vasturia. Morris shared a laugh when he admitted that Dunphy, who didn't stay until game's end, wasn't aware of the record.

The win pushes the Hawks to 14-6 overall, 8-3 PCL. For Morris, it's just another notch on his belt, meaning "you've just been around a long time."

For others, well, it's a part of history. "It's just a story to tell," Overton said, "to say that I was coached by Speedy Morris."

Cardinal O'Hara    16 7 4 11 - 38

St. Joseph's Prep    15 14 8 18 - 55

CO: Joel Davidson 8, Chris Duffin 3, Lamotte Williams 3, Cameron Hilaire 2, Sean Mayo 18, Ed Allen 4

SJP: Miles Overton 10, Matt Stahl 1, James Stewart 3, Kevin Oberlies 1, Gene Williams 15, Steve Vasturia 25