The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
UConn recruit Cheli healthy and raising her game
Morgan Cheli has complete confidence in her teammates.
But with time running down and her Archbishop Mitty girls basketball team from San Jose, California, trailing by one in the final of the Nike Tournament of Champions on Dec. 21 in Mesa, Arizona, the 6-foot-2 senior guard and UConn women’s basketball Class of 2024 recruit knew it was her time to rise to the occasion.
“I wanted the ball and do whatever I could to help our team and step up for them,” Cheli said Tuesday night. “I’m the point guard and one of the leaders. I wanted to be that calming presence for everyone else and be a court general. I wanted to stay focused on getting the defensive stops we needed. When I got fouled and went to the line, I wanted to make sure that I stayed confident.”
Cheli sank two free throws with 16.4 seconds left for the 10th lead change of the fourth quarter and then helped the Monarchs get two defensive stops to preserve the advantage as Mitty, ranked third in the nation by MaxPreps, edged No. 1 Long Island (New York) Lutheran 73-72 in a nationally-televised (ESPNU) contest that has to be the game of the year of the young season.
The win gave the Monarchs (7-0) the title of the top division of the TOC named after Vincent Cannizzaro, who was former UConn and WNBA star Sue Bird’s high school coach at Christ the King in New York, and elevated them to the top of the MaxPreps rankings as they head to Oregon to start play in the Portland Holiday Classic Thursday.
Cheli, who sat out the 2022 TOC because of a foot injury, had a triple-double of 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists. She was named to the all-tournament team along with teammates McKenna Woliczko, the Most Valuable Player and one of the top re
cruits in the Class of 2026, and Belle Bramer, who has signed with Lehigh.
“I didn’t play in the tournament last year but that made me more excited to play this year,” Cheli said. “It was so much fun and a great experience. I mean, we won so it couldn’t get much better than that.
“The championship game was so much fun. The intensity was at an alltime high I would say. It was loud. The pace was fast. It was great competition between two really good teams.”
Mitty used a 7-0 run to erase a five-point deficit and it stayed a one-possession game over the final six minutes. Michigan recruit Syla Swords gave Long Island Lutheran a 72-71 lead with a three-point play with 29.8 seconds remaining before Cheli was fouled on the perimeter and sank two free throws to put Mitty in front.
The Monarchs forced a jump ball to regain possession but turned it over on the inbounds pass. Long Island Lutheran’s bid to go the length of the court in the final 2.6 seconds fell short with Swords missing an off-balance shot at the buzzer.
“Credit to LuHi,” Cheli said. “They have so many strengths. They shoot the ball well from outside and have great size inside. On our team we had a variety of players step up and contribute and bring something to the table. We couldn’t have won it without everybody playing a role.
“We’ve had a lot of growth and made a lot of steps forward. We’ve proven ourselves a little bit already but we’re looking forward to playing again and what’s next on our schedule to see where we’re at. I’m really proud of the group.”
Cheli missed much of her junior season with the foot injury but returned in time to help Mitty to a third straight Northern
California Open Division title. She then had 24 points, six rebounds, five assists, and four steals in a 69-67 loss to Etiwanda in the state final.
She stayed healthy through the summer and played 64 games with her EYBL club team, CalStars, to get ready for her senior year. In the first seven games, she is averaging 16.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 10.1 assists, and 3.1 steals. She had double-figure assists in the TOC wins over Miami Country Day (6235), Xavier College Prep (72-42), Crestwood Prep (69-55), and Long Island Lutheran.
“Morgan was paramount to our success,” Mitty coach Sue Phillips said. “She’s our floor general and play maker. She constantly fills the stat sheet and is one of the top two-way guards in the country.”
Cheli, from Los Altos, Calif., is ranked the No. 18 recruit in the Class of 2024 by ESPN. She committed to UConn coach Geno Auriemma on an unofficial
visit in February and announced her decision in April. She had more than 40 scholarship offers including from South Carolina and nearby Stanford.
Before signing her letter of intent in November, she took her official visit and was in the Gampel Pavilion stands for the Huskies’ First Night festivities. She was joined in Storrs by the other member of UConn’s recruiting class at this point, guard Allie Ziebell from Neenah, Wisc.
“The best part of First Night? All of it,” Cheli said with a laugh. “The crowd, the energy, when the lights went out and everyone had their phones out ... It was so cool. And Coach Auriemma’s dance was great.
“I was able to spend more time with the players and coaches, specifically the players. It was so much fun getting to know them. Allie was awesome. It was enjoyable to watch how hard they play and work and how they want each other to succeed. It’s a special group and I can’t wait
to be a part of it.”
UConn (9-3 and ranked No. 15) has been off since Dec. 20 but has returned to campus to begin preparations for Sunday’s Big East contest against No. 18 and unbeaten Marquette at the XL Center in Hartford.
Cheli watches the Huskies on television every chance she gets, but in a different way since last February when she committed.
“Having relationships with the players makes a difference,” Cheli said. “Obviously, I rooted for them before. But it’s on a deeper level now. I want them to succeed and play well. When I’m able to watch, I try to envision myself in different scenarios and find things that I could add and try to help them win.”
While she plays point guard for Mitty, that won’t necessarily be where she plays in college. Her size and versatility will give Auriemma flexibility with the lineups that include her.
“I can play wherever
Coach Auriemma needs me to be besides center,” Cheli said. “Whether I’m a point guard, a trail four, rebound-and-run situations, I’ll do whatever he wants and whatever it takes to win. I think my versatility will help me next year.”
There’s one other decision she needs to make before she arrives in Storrs.
Her uniform No. 33 at Mitty belongs to junior Caroline Ducharme. Her uniform No. 12 from AAU belongs to freshman Ashlynn Shade. She’s not sure what number she’ll ask for yet but one option hangs on the Gampel Pavilion wall in the Huskies of Honor program for Maya Moore and for fellow Californian Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis.
“I’m leaning towards 23 because in EYBL I wear 12 and I wear 33 with Mitty,” Cheli said. “So if I take 23, that’s one number from each. Those will be some big shoes to fill wearing that number at UConn but that makes me even more excited.”