MINNEAPOLIS -- Carlos Morris is quiet.
In postgame interviews, the Gophers guard doesn't say much. It's the same on the court, too, and Minnesota head coach Richard Pitino has been trying to get Morris to come out of his shell during the Gophers' early portion of their schedule.
At the start of practices, the Gophers run a drill where players have to call a teammate's name out loud as they pass them the ball. When it's Morris' turn to do it, it's hard to hear him.
"Legitimately, he's so quiet," Pitino said.
Morris let his shot do the talking Friday in a 92-57 win over Seattle. After scoring a season-high 19 points to lead the Gophers to a blowout victory, it's hard to find many flaws in Morris' game. The junior guard shot 6 of 10 from the floor, including 3 of 6 from 3-point range.After scoring a season-high 19 points to lead the Gophers to a blowout victory, it's hard to find many flaws in Morris' game.
Morris may still be working on finding his voice on the court, but he hasn't had any problem finding his shot.
"It started off in practice," Morris said. "I'm just trying to be a better guy in practice and talk more and get out of my comfort zone in practice. It's helped me a lot."
In what Pitino called the Gophers' best performance of the year as a team, Morris turned in the best individual scoring performance. Minnesota hoped Morris could add a scoring presence after he transferred from Chipola College -- where he averaged 14.7 games as a sophomore -- prior to this season. Before Friday's game, he had done just that. Morris had scored in double-figures in each of his last four games before his season-high 19 points against Seattle.
It was clear in the first half Friday that this was Morris' night. He splashed in a 3-pointer to put the Gophers up 31-15 and connected again from downtown late in the half to push Minnesota's lead to 38-15. By halftime, Morris had already scored 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting, including a perfect 4 for 4 from the free-throw line. He added another 3-pointer after halftime and drove from the corner for a layup to give him 19 for the game.
"He's a scorer," said Gophers point guard DeAndre Mathieu, who had nine assists and six steals in Friday's victory. "He scores in a variety of ways. He's finally shooting the three. Coach has been telling him to shoot the three for a while. He's a really good 3-point shooter."
Morris certainly wasn't shy to shoot the 3-pointer against Seattle. His previous high for most attempts from downtown was five, which he's done just once. He topped that with six attempts on Friday.
Pitino pointed out after the win that Minnesota set a new school record last season for both 3-pointers attempted (773) and made (272). Given the fact that Pitino's teams tend to have a knack for shooting from downtown, there's no reason Morris can't pull the trigger on a 3-pointer if he finds himself open.
"I said, 'I don't know why you're not shooting wide-open threes. When did I tell you not to shoot open threes?'" Pitino said. "I said, 'If you're open, bombs away.' That's exactly what I told him. He has done a great job of taking good shots. The shot selection is great."
After Friday's 19-point effort, Morris is now averaging 12.5 points per game this season as he continues to emerge as a scoring threat for Minnesota. He played just 11 minutes in the second half as the Gophers ran away with a 35-point win.
Morris wasn't alone in his scoring efforts Friday, as Mo Walker, Nate Mason and Andre Hollins all chipped in with 15 points. Mason, a freshman, and the senior Walker have stepped up as a scoring option for the Gophers, while Hollins has been the team's leading scorer since his freshman year.
If Minnesota can continue to get this type of scoring production from Morris, the Gophers' offense will be in great shape. But Pitino would also like to see Morris take steps forward on the other side of the ball in order to elevate his game to another level.
That, and becoming a more vocal presence on the court.
"He's really, really quiet," Pitino said. "That's the next step for him, certainly."
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