Salt Lake City, UT - Westminster Director of Athletics Shay Wyatt announced the hiring of Asami Morita as the next head women's basketball coach. Morita comes to Westminster after spending the past two years as an assistant coach at the University of Nevada, Reno.
"I'm very pleased to announce Asami Morita as the next head coach of our women's basketball program," said Wyatt. "Asami comes highly regarded and well mentored, having assisted with and led successful programs and championship teams. Her calm and confident demeanor along with her philosophy and passion to further develop our student-athletes and build upon the success of our women's basketball program stood out. Our search yielded an impressive candidate pool and competitive process. We look forward to welcoming Coach Morita to our institution and team."
With 14 years as a collegiate basketball coach, the past two years Morita served as an assistant coach at the University of Nevada, Reno where she helped Alyssa Jimenez post six double-doubles and receive All-Mountain West Conference Honorable Mention honors. Nevada had four players pass the 500-career point mark during the season. In 2021-22 her first season as an assistant coach, Nevada obtained the second-most wins in program history with 20. After a third-place finish in the Mountain West Conference, Nevada received an invitation to the Women's Basketball Invitational. Morita guided Da'ja Hamilton, Alyssa Jimenez, and Audrey Roden to All-Mountain West honors. The year also saw Nevada shoot 80.9 percent from the free throw line, ranking fourth in the nation and being the 11th-best free throw percentage in NCAA Division I women's basketball history. Morita also assisted senior guard Kylie Jimenez to record a 3.19 assist-to-turnover ratio that ranked second in the country.
"I am honored and thrilled to be the next Head Women's Basketball Coach at Westminster College. I would like to thank Vice President Dr. Glenn Smith, Director of Athletics Shay Wyatt, and Associate Athletics Director Shelley Jarrard for this opportunity, "said Morita. I strive to continue to develop a culture of excellence academically and athletically, and most importantly develop our student-athletes in life. Westminster has a great tradition of creating positive and impactful experiences for student-athletes, and I will focus on continuing that tradition."
Prior to her arrival in Nevada, Morita coached at Robert Morris University. In her seven seasons as an assistant coach, the Colonials made five Northeast Conference (NEC) Championship Games, winning three titles in 2016, 2017, and 2019. RMU went 133-78 (.630) since 2014-15 and notched ninety-one wins in league play. The Colonials won four consecutive NEC regular-season titles over that span.
"I have great respect for Coach Morita's unwavering pursuit of her passion for coaching. She is a true learner and leader who is a dynamic fit for Westminster," said Shelley Jarrard, Associate Athletics Director. I love her story and experience, in which she has made strong supportive connections regionally, nationally, and internationally. I personally found Asami very easy to connect with and extremely astute with all things basketball. I look forward to watching her make those same connections with our women's basketball team."
Morita served as an assistant coach for the Shiga Lakestars, a professional men's basketball team in the Basketball Japan League. She was responsible for the recruitment of international players, coordinating team travel, and scouting, and also served as the team's interpreter.
Morita was the head coach at Kansai University in Osaka, Japan from February 2011 through April 2013. She led her squad to its first Sweet 16 appearance in both the All Kansai Women's Basketball Championship and the Western Japan Women's Intercollegiate Basketball Championship. Kansai also had second-place league finishes in 2011 and 2012, posting marks of 7-1 in both seasons with Morita at the helm.
Morita began her coaching career at Arizona Western College in Yuma, Arizona, where she was an assistant during the 2009-10 season. There she was responsible for academics, individual workouts, coaching guards, equipment, assisting in scouting and team travel.
Morita graduated in 2007 with a degree in commerce from Kansai University, where she was a four-year player on the women's basketball team. She went on to complete her post-graduate work at Idaho State, earning a Master of Physical Education in athletic administration in 2009.