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Marcus Morris walks into the Prep Charter lobby carrying a giant snack pack. With the Huskies heading on a two-hour road trip to Baltimore, several of his teammates are in need of food and drink. Standing in the corner, he distributes the goodies.
He has no problem looking out for his team. After all, his teammates have provided Marcus and twin brother Markieff, a 6-foot-9 junior forward, a support system when they needed it the most.
Dec. 13, Marcus, a 6-foot-8 junior forward, was getting ready for Prep Charter’s home game against the High School for Creative and Performing Arts when he got an unexpected call on his cell. One of his neighbors was calling to tell him his family’s North Philadelphia home was on fire. The blaze was later determined to be electrical.
Markieff was just getting out of class when he got the news.
Marcus told coach Dan Brinkley, who repeated "your house is on fire" in disbelief.
"I gave them 15 to 20 minutes to go in the coach’s office and get themselves together," Brinkley said.
The coach said he wanted the athletes to skip the game, but they opted to play.
"It was real tough," Marcus said. "I wasn’t going to play, but my mom said to stay and play the game."
Mom Angel said seeing the house could wait.
"I didn’t want them to come home and see what happened," she said. "I know they love basketball. I told them to stay and play basketball and we will talk about [the fire] when they get home."
Prep Charter defeated CAPA, 80-18, with Markieff scoring 20 points, while Marcus added 14. Later that night, the brothers went to their house at North Broad Street and Erie Avenue and found it totally destroyed.
"I thought we could still live there, but we couldn’t," Marcus said. "It was all messed up."
ALL OF THEIR personal belongings, including their clothes and sneakers, were destroyed. Angel said the fire took a toll on the family, but luckily her parents live in nearby Hunting Park and had plenty of room for the trio.
"A little burden was lifted because there is grandma and grandpa," Angel said. "Even though we don’t have those [personal belongings], we can still be comfortable."
Through the whole process, the brothers said they felt the worst for their mom, who had lived in the house for seven years.
"I was worried about how my mom was," Morris said. "It really didn’t hurt me as much as it hurt my mom."
Basketball has provided the twins an outlet to deal with their situation. Four days after the fire, they flew to Southern California with their teammates for the Mission Prep Tournament, where the Huskies finished 1-2.
"It really took my mind off of things for a while," Markieff said.
They used the time to bond with their teammates through games of two-on-two basketball and billiards. They constantly checked in back home, making sure mom was OK.
Brinkley said several Prep Charter parents made donations to help the Morris family, while the school has held fund-raisers and provided the twins with new basketball uniforms.
"The school has been excellent," Angel said. "They’ve helped with the clothes and gave us money."
She said she is trying to get some furniture to help her sons feel more comfortable at their grandparents’ house, adding the family should be back at their own home in seven to eight months.
The brothers’ personal situation certainly hasn’t affected their performance on the court. Marcus is averaging 16 points per game, while Markieff was at 15 points a contest, which he said should be higher.
"I had a stinker my last game [five points], which brought my average down," Markieff said.
Brinkley said he is impressed with how the twins are handling themselves.
"They’re focused and still contributing," he said.
Their desire to win a Public League championship might have a little to do with that. Last season, the twins helped Prep Charter become the first charter school in history to compete for a Public League championship in any sport. The team lost to Central, but in 2006 anything less than that win simply will not do.
"We’ve got too many threats on our team," Marcus joked.
Last Thursday, the Huskies were too much for defending Maryland state champs Walbrook, as the visitors picked up a 58-55 win. Brinkley said it was the first time Walbrook lost at home in two years.
The game was just prep for bigger things to come, as Marcus and Markieff want to see their team make a better run in this year’s PIAA AA state tournament. In March, the squad was one of only three city teams to advance to the second round of tournament play.
"As long as we play hard and together, we can win," Marcus said. "If we don’t play hard and together, we can’t win anything."
But these twin towers have a bright future beyond any Prep Charter championship moment. Division I schools Rutgers, Pittsburgh, La Salle, Syracuse, St. Joseph’s, Villanova, West Virginia and Virginia are hot on their trail. Just like in high school, Marcus and Markieff are a package deal.
The only question is, where to go?
"I don’t want to stay close," Marcus said. "I want to try something new outside the city."
Markieff, on the other hand, said he doesn’t have a preference.
For now, winning the Public League title takes priority.
"I am guaranteeing that we will win it," Markieff said. "We got to have it."
