University of North Carolina Athletics
CAROLINA: The Same Paige
March 6, 2014 | Men's Basketball
NOTE: This article originally appeared in the March 4 issue of CAROLINA.
by Robbi Pickeral
When Morgan Paige gets a chance to watch younger brother Marcus play on television or online, the senior Wisconsin wing tends to get a bit vocal.
"Attack," she'll mutter if he's not being aggressive enough with his shot.
"Forget about it," she'll warn if he misses.
"THAT'S THE WAY YOU DO IT!" she'll scream-then text, in all caps-when he hits a game winner, a la the North Carolina point guard's driving basket with 0.9 seconds left in overtime recently at NC State.
"Yes, I'm guessing she does yell at the TV when we play," Marcus Paige, the UNC sophomore and slightly more laid-back sibling said, grinning at the thought. "But that's great ... because the biggest thing for me is knowing I have someone out there who is always supporting me, and who is going through the same things as me-homework, travel, study hall, practice, wins, losses.
"She's my sister, someone I can turn to. We're there for each other, and in college, even though we're 20 hours apart, we've gotten even closer."
Indeed, as the postseason looms for Morgan-a starter averaging 12.2 points for the 10-16 Badgers-and Marcus-the leading scorer and assist-man for the surging Tar Heels-the No. 5s credit each other for their competitive streaks, perseverance and hardcourt successes.
"There's no doubt," Morgan said, "that we made each other better."
The children of two college basketball players (Ellis and Sherryl Paige met at Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where they both played), their DNA likely gave them little choice.
The twosome, who say they are sometimes mistaken for twins, are just 15 months apart in age; and some of Marcus' earliest memories are of dribbling/toddling up and down the sideline with his sister as his mom coached high school basketball. When the family moved into a new house when the kids were in elementary school, one of the first things they built was a backyard basketball court big enough for a 3-point line. In middle school, their dad coached both of their AAU teams-which sometimes practiced against each other
"We did grow up playing a lot of one-on-one in the backyard, but it got so competitive for a couple of years there [when Marcus was in sixth and seventh grade, and Morgan was in seventh and eighth] that my dad wouldn't let us play anymore," Morgan remembered, laughing. "It just got a little too nasty ... a little too competitive. We grew out of it, but it was heated there for a while."
No matter the competition, though, there was always support. Morgan, the self-described "late bloomer" of the family, danced and tried a few other sports before, she said, "it finally hit, how much I loved the game" of basketball. Playing for her mom at Marion High in Marion, Iowa, she was tabbed as an all-state selection every year at MHS and was dubbed one of the best women's players in the region when she chose Wisconsin.
Marcus, who won a state championship his junior year at Linn-Mar High School and became one of the top point guards in his recruiting class, estimates he got to see his sister play about ten games in person for the Badgers before he left for Chapel Hill.
Because of their busy college schedules, visits since then have been sporadic. But they text message almost every day, talk at least once a week, and often meet up for virtual family gatherings with their parents via Google Hangouts.
Sister and brother miss the mutual dribbling, shooting and passing drill sessions-as well as the family HORSE games-that are less frequent since they left home, though.
"Especially when the season gets long, you're like, 'Man, if I could shoot baskets with one person right now, it would be Marcus,'" Morgan Paige said. "And I don't get that opportunity because we're so far away. But I am blessed that I can still call him and say, 'It's been a long day,' and we can chop it up, and talk about so many things."
Such as the Badgers' rough Big Ten season.
Such as studying and exams.
Such as Marcus' quest to add weight and his increased role as a scorer.
"She's always been more of a wing and had more of a score-first mentality than me ... and she knows the way I've always been: that if I miss a couple of shots, I'm less likely to shoot it, I'm going to attack and get my teammates the ball because I've always had more of a pass-first mentality," Marcus Paige said. "So this year, with me playing more '2,' she's been there to remind me that I have to be more aggressive, that I can't worry about missing shots."
Thus, the muttering, screaming and texting when she gets a chance-even over the Internet-to watch her brother compete. With the distance between them and their ever-busy schedules, the siblings don't often get a chance to watch each other play live, but when they do, it's special.
"Especially now that he's on such a big stage, playing in the ACC, it's always fascinating to think: 'Oh, that's the same little boy who I used to play one-on-one in the backyard with.' It's just crazy to me," Morgan Paige said. "But I also I feel like we still have a lot of basketball in front of us. Whether it's playing or cheering each other on or even if it's sitting watching games, I hope we will take this and continue this for the rest of our lives, this bond that we share through the game we both love. We're so blessed with that."
