Jay Morris has been named an assistant coach for the USC men’s basketball program, it was announced by head coach Andy Enfield today (Aug. 30).  

Morris spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach at San Diego State, where he helped guide the Aztecs to a combined 74-20 record, including a 42-11 tally in Mountain West Conference games.  San Diego State went 23-5 last season and won the Mountain West Conference Tournament, before falling to Syracuse in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament.

During the 2019-20 season, he helped guide the program to a 26-0 start, and distinction as the last undefeated team in Division I.  San Diego State was the only team in the country to complete the regular season with just one loss (28-1) and one of three programs to finish the year with only two losses. SDSU spent 15 weeks ranked in the national polls including 11 weeks in the AP top-10. For five weeks the squad was No. 4 and finished at No. 6, equaling its highest ranking to end a season (2010-11).

Morris spent the 2017-18 season as an assistant coach at San Jose State.  In his one season at SJSU, Morris helped the Spartans improve in several statistical categories, mostly on the defensive side of the ball. SJSU finished five spots better in the Mountain West than it did in 2016-17 in field-goal percentage defense, ranking sixth and limiting foes to 43.7 percent shooting (46.0 percent in ’16-17). The Spartans also finished with better conference rankings than the previous season in three-point field-goal percentage defense (8th to 4th) and scoring defense (9th to 7th). Offensively, Morris helped SJSU improve its three-point shooting as it ranked fifth in the MW in 2017-18 (.371) compared to 2016-17’s seventh-place showing (.348).

Prior to the 2017-18 season, Morris briefly held a non-coaching position at SDSU before accepting the full-time assistant coach job at San José State. He spent the 2016-17 season at Long Beach State as the director of player development, where he was responsible, in part, for the development of an off-court curriculum focused on developing skills and relationships that would assist student-athletes after basketball.

Prior to his time at the Big West school, Morris spent the 2015-16 campaign at Nevada. In that one season, Morris helped the Wolf Pack to a 24-14 record, which was a 15-win improvement over the previous year, and to a CBI championship. On the recruiting trail, Morris was the lead recruiter for several four-star signees, leading to national recognition by a number of recruiting sites.

Before moving to Reno, Morris was rooted at CSUN, a school he spent five seasons at as an assistant coach. While in the San Fernando Valley, Morris led the recruiting efforts for the 2012 Big West Freshman of the Year and number of Division I transfers. On the floor, he was instrumental in the development of the team’s perimeter and interior players, and while assisting the Matador offense in 2013-14, CSUN ranked in the top-10 nationally in free throw percentage (1st), free throws made (2nd) and free throws attempted (8th).

Morris got his Division I start at Long Beach State where he spent two seasons as the director of operations. In his position, he was responsible for coordinating team travel, film exchange, serving as camp director, maintaining the program’s recruiting database and monitoring academic progress. During his time at LBSU, the 49ers had the 10th-best recruiting class among mid-majors in 2009 and made the title game at the 2010 Big West tournament.

A member of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), Morris received his coaching start at his high school alma mater, Westchester High in Los Angeles where he was an assistant basketball coach and strength coach for three seasons. During his stint at the prep level, Morris coached six players who went on to play Division I.

Morris earned his bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology from Cal State Dominguez Hills in 2010, and later received his master’s degree in coaching/athletic administration from Concordia University in 2017.

Morris and his wife, Yavonna, have twins — a son named Chance and daughter named Mercy.

https://usctrojans.com/news/2021/8/30/morris-named-usc-mens-basketball-assistant-coach.aspx