RANCHO CUCAMONGA — It was four years ago, and the Etiwanda girls basketball dynasty was about to begin.
The Eagles hadn’t yet won a CIF title, but were losing in the CIF State Division I-AA regional final.
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Etiwanda senior point guard Aliyahna “Puff” Morris has the zen of a winner and three straight State Open Division championships to prove it in Rancho Cucamonga on Wednesday, March 26, 2025. Morris has been chosen the IE Varsity Girls Basketball Player of the Year (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
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Etiwanda senior point guard Aliyahna “Puff” Morris has the zen of a winner and three straight State Open Division championships to prove it in Rancho Cucamonga on Wednesday, March 26, 2025. Morris has been chosen the IE Varsity Girls Basketball Player of the Year (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
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Etiwanda coach Stan Delus heard a voice that said, “y’all need me.”
The voice was that of Aliyahna “Puff” Morris.
“She said that during the game, while she was in the eighth grade,” Delus said.
“I would’ve won that year, too,” Morris recalled recently.
“She wasn’t wrong,” Delus said. “If she was on that team (as an eighth grader) we would’ve won that regional final.”
Morris had to wait another year for winning in high school, so she didn’t waste time.
She won two CIF Southern Section Open Division titles and led the Eagles to their third straight CIF Open Division state title, earning her IE Varsity Girls Basketball Player of the Year honors.
While there were high expectations for Etiwanda this year, there was some uncertainty with Etiwanda’s three-time IE Varsity Player of the Year Kennedy Smith graduating and beginning her college career at USC.
Morris, a 5-foot-5 Cal-bound guard, has always been a leader but needed to pick up even more of the leadership role with Smith gone.
“This is a different team that I had to be in charge of,” she said. “There were different personalities this year. I had to be more commanding.”
The Eagles got off to a rough start to the season, losing three of their first five games and were only 4-4 on Christmas. They lost only one of their final 25 games.
“The season got more serious (with the slow start), but it doesn’t matter if you lose at the beginning of the season,” Morris said. “Just taking it one game at a time is my mindset.”
While Delus said Morris had a pretty complete arsenal of talents on the basketball floor, she improved her scoring this year. Shaena Brew was frequently the primary ball handler, allowing her to play off the ball and showcase her shooting.
“She’s always been steady. The main jump is her 3-point shooting for sure,” Delus said. “ I think this year was good for her rebounding-wise. That was impressive. She got in there and got in the mix.”
“I wasn’t expecting to average 20-something points a game,” she admitted.
“State championship game, she went back to regular point guard Puff,” Delus said. “The passes she made in the state championship game were unreal.”
After averaging 18 points per game as a junior, Morris averaged 24 points per game as a senior. She also averaged four rebounds, three assists and 1.4 steals. She also improved her half-court defense, often matching up with the opposition’s top guard.
She and teammate Grace Knox were named McDonald’s All-Americans, just like Smith was last year.
With Etiwanda winning an unprecedented third straight state Open Division title, Morris leaves high school as one of the most decorated girls basketball players in state history. But she hopes she is remembered for more than that.
“Hopefully my character is praised and not diminished,” she said. “(I want to be remembered as) Hard working and nice. People say I look mean when I play, but when they talk to me, I’m different. (Also I should be remembered for) my belief in Christ.”
While there may have been a little skepticism from Delus four years ago about how much of an impact Morris would immediately make in high school, he doesn’t have that for her future at Cal.
“Puff is going to take control as soon as she gets there,” Delus said. “She’s not going to try to take it. But her nature and approach is different from everybody else’s. If you don’t come to play, she might look at you like you’re crazy.”
— PETE MARSHALL
IE VARSITY COACH OF THE YEAR
Chloe Wells, Hillcrest
Wells starred at Miller High School in Fontana and later at Duke and played professionally overseas for about a decade. She decided to begin her coaching career and landed the job at Hillcrest less than two months before the season began. Wells had an immediate impact. The Trojans went 7-20 the previous year but bounced back with the best season in program history. Hillcrest went 26-7 (10-0 in Inland Valley League play) and captured the CIF Southern Section Division 5AA championship, the first in program history and the school’s sixth section title in any sport. The Trojans also made history by reaching the CIF State Division V regional championship game.
— ERIC-PAUL JOHNSON
IE VARSITY FIRST TEAM
Cydnee Bryant, Centennial, Jr.
Carrington Davis, Rialto, Sr.
Sydney Douglas, Ontario Christian, Fr.
Tatianna Griffin, Ontario Christian, Fr.
Grace Knox, Etiwanda, Sr.
Alaysha Mills, Moreno Valley, So.
Amya Moody, King, Sr.
Aliyahna Morris, Etiwanda, Sr.
Tess Oldenburg, Chino, Sr.
Jackie Polk, Rialto, Jr.
Kaleena Smith, Ontario Christian, So.
Julia Wilson, Rancho Christian, Sr.
IE VARSITY SECOND TEAM
Zara Ahaiwe, Rancho Cucamonga, So.
Alyson Boyd, Rancho Christian, Jr.
Shaena Brew, Etiwanda, Sr.
Zetta Faasua, Chaparral, So.
Arynn Finley, Etiwanda, Jr.
Khrysma Johnson, Claremont, Jr.
Mylah Lewis, Roosevelt, Sr.
Sierra Maxwell, Heritage, Sr.
Alanna Neale, Ontario Christian, Sr.
Lexi Mercado, Bonita, Sr.
Leiayjah Mills, Moreno Valley, Sr.
Luvlee Sadler, San Jacinto, Sr.
— ERIC-PAUL JOHNSON
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