Teige Morrell

Teige Morrell (; born December 8, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Perth Lynx of the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL). She is also contracted with the Lakeside Lightning of the NBL1 West. She played college basketball for the Nevada Wolf Pack before playing professionally in Australia. She won the NBL1 Central MVP in 2019 with the Woodville Warriors and then spent a season with the Bendigo Spirit in the WNBL. In 2021, she helped the Southern Tigers win the NBL1 Central championship behind another MVP season. She joined the Joondalup Wolves in 2022 and earned All-NBL1 West First Team honors in 2022 and 2023.

Early life

Morrell was born in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to an American father, Marty, and a Zimbabwean mother, Gael. She was the couple's third child; her two older brothers, Roman and Weston, were born in Australia and Cyprus respectively. Her parents met in Perth, Western Australia, and had been globetrotters while her father played or coached basketball in Europe, Australia and the Middle East. The family moved to the United States in 1999 and settled down in New Mexico, where her younger brother Zanen was born.

Morrell attended Los Lunas High School in Los Lunas, New Mexico. Between 2010 and 2014, she played for the girls basketball team coached by her father. She was a two-time All-Metro Player of the Year, two-time Defensive Player of the Year, two-time state basketball tournament MVP, two-time District 6 AAAA Player of the Year, and three-time first-team All-State. The team won a district and state championship in her junior year in 2012–13 and a district title in her senior year in 2013–14. In high school, she also competed in cross country, tennis, volleyball, and track.

College career

As a freshman at Nevada in 2014–15, Morrell appeared in 29 games with two starts, averaging 2.6 points and 2.8 rebounds in 10.0 minutes per game. She had a season-high eight rebounds against Utah State on February 11, and a season-high nine points against New Mexico on February 14.

As a sophomore in 2015–16, Morrell appeared in all 30 games with 21 starts, averaging 7.3 points and 5.9 rebounds in 24.0 minutes per game. She scored in double figures in nine games and posted two double-doubles, including 11 points and a season-high 18 rebounds against San Jose State on February 17, and a season-high 17 points and 13 rebounds against Boise State on March 1.

As a junior in 2016–17, Morrell appeared in all 30 games with 18 starts, averaging 5.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 19.7 minutes per game. She had a season-high 16 rebounds in a triple-overtime win over Hawaii on December 18, and a season-high 14 points against San Diego State on February 12.

As a senior in 2017–18, Morrell played and started in all 36 games, averaging 14.2 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 28.2 minutes per game. She scored in double figures in 31 games and recorded a career-high 12 double-doubles and six 20-point games, which included career highs of 24 points and 19 rebounds against Stanislaus State on December 12. She was subsequently named to the All-Mountain West Team. She helped the Wolf Pack reach the final of the 2018 Mountain West tournament, where they lost 62–60 to Boise State despite 14 points from Morrell. She was subsequently named to the all-tournament team.

In each of her first three seasons, Morrell earned Mountain West Scholar-Athlete honors and was named to the All-Mountain West academic team.

Following her senior season, Morrell toured internationally with Athletes in Action.

Professional career

Morrell moved to Australia in 2019 to play for the Woodville Warriors of the South Australian Premier League. She was named league MVP and All-Star Five after averaging 22 points and 13 rebounds per game.

On October 18, 2019, Morrell signed with the Bendigo Spirit of the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) as a short-term injury replacement for Rebecca Tobin. She played three games in her first stint. She re-joined the Spirit in January 2020 as an injury replacement for Marté Grays and played five more games to finish the 2019–20 WNBL season. In eight games, she averaged 1.8 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.

Morrell was set to play for the Southern Tigers in the rebranded NBL1 Central in 2020, but the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Morrell made her debut for the Southern Tigers in the 2021 NBL1 Central season. She was again named league MVP and All-Star Five after averaging 23.1 points and 12.4 rebounds per game. She helped the Tigers reach the NBL1 Central grand final, where they defeated the North Adelaide Rockets 87–77 to win the championship. Morrell was named grand final MVP after recording 27 points and 16 rebounds.

On October 4, 2021, Morrell signed a two-year deal with the Joondalup Wolves of the NBL1 West. In the 2022 season, she was named to the All-NBL1 West First Team. In 22 games, she averaged 21.64 points, 11.18 rebounds, 3.55 assists and 1.32 steals per game.

With the Wolves in 2023, Morrell was named to the All-NBL1 West First Team for the second straight year. In 22 games, she averaged 22.0 points, 12.23 rebounds, 3.05 assists, 1.18 steals and 1.41 blocks per game.

Morrell joined the Perth Lynx as a development player for the 2023–24 WNBL season. She was elevated to the Lynx playing squad in late December 2023 following an injury to import guard Aari McDonald. In her debut for the Lynx on January 3, 2024, she had seven points and four rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench in a 104–91 loss to the Townsville Fire.

Morrell is set to join the Lakeside Lightning for the 2024 NBL1 West season.

Personal life

Morrell's father, Marty, played basketball at New Mexico Military Institute (NMMI) and Baylor University before becoming a professional basketball coach. He had a successful high school coaching career in the 2010s. He will return to Australia in 2024 to coach the Lakeside Lightning women's team in the NBL1 West.

Her brother, Weston, also played basketball at NMMI.

Her husband, David Morrell, is an American basketball coach who also attended the University of Nevada. He accompanied Teige to Australia in 2019 and coached at the same clubs as her until 2023.

In 2023, Morrell applied to become an Australian permanent resident, but delays with her government paperwork meant she was classified as an import for the 2023–24 WNBL season.

She is a Christian.

References

External links

NBL1 profileNevada Wolf Pack college bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrell, Teige
1995 births
Living people
American expatriate basketball people in Australia
American women's basketball players
Basketball players from New Mexico
Bendigo Spirit players
Centers (basketball)
Nevada Wolf Pack athletes
Perth Lynx players
Power forwards (basketball)