Freshman Forward Making An Impact For Lady Sharks
Basketball runs through Nazlah Morrow’s blood.
Her mom, Nafeesah (Brown) Morrow, was a star at the University of Nebraska where the forward averaged 20.2 points and 10.1 rebounds per game as a senior during the 1993-94 season.
Her brother, Ed Morrow, was a six-foot-seven-inch senior forward at Marquette University before he left the Golden Eagles in January. He was averaging 3.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.
Now, the five-foot-11-inch freshman forward is blazing her own path on the basketball court at Miami Dade College. Nazlah is averaging 14.2 points and 9.2 rebounds a game for the Lady Sharks this season.
“For me, basketball is more than just a game, it’s all about what it symbolizes for me and my family,” Nazlah said. “Basketball has a special place in my heart. It always will.”
Ever since Nazlah can remember, she has been dribbling a basketball. In grade school, she took the bus to Morgan Park High School in Chicago where her mom was the girl’s basketball coach. Nazlah would practice there, perfecting her dribbling and shooting skills after she was done with her homework.
In high school, Nazlah played for Simeon Career Academy High School in Chicago. During her senior campaign, she averaged 7.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in 28 games for the Wolverines.
After meeting with Lady Sharks’ head coach Susan Summons, Nazlah knew Miami would be her new home.
“Nazlah Morrow has the ability and potential to be a great player at this level and the next,” Summons said. “It’s all up to her mindset…she is a great teammate and quite coachable.”
The Lady Sharks are currently 13-8 and 2-2 in Southern Conference play. Nazlah is an integral part of the team’s offense. That was never more evident than in the Lady Sharks 61-51 conference loss to Broward College on Jan. 11.
Nazlah grabbed nine rebounds and scored eight points in the game but she missed 12 of 14 shots.
“It was just one of those games where we weren’t as in sync,” Nazlah said. “We’re working on getting our chemistry back. We’re all still finding our way.”
Combo-guard Daliyah Brown, who leads the nation in scoring with 26.7 points per game, considers Nazlah a team leader.
”I definitely connect with her. We have that post-guard connection. She’s kinda like the freshman leader, that’s what I call her,” Brown said. “I’m kind of the mom on the team. She can get through to the girls in a way I can’t.”
The Lady Sharks’ next game is at home at the Theodore R. Gibson Health Center, 11011 S.W. 104th St., on Jan. 29 at 5:30 p.m. versus Broward College.
