DePauw University starting point guard Michael Moore is only 5-foot-8 and a freshman, but he's already made a big impact four games into his college career

Monday, November 28, 2005

DePauw University starting point guard Michael Moore is only 5-foot-8 and a freshman, but he's already made a big impact four games into his college career.

Moore scored seven straight points in overtime to lead the Tigers past

Manchester (Ind.) College, 88-83, Sunday for the championship of the third

annual Mike Rokicki Community Versus Cancer Challenge at Neal Fieldhouse.

Moore's 23-foot 3-point shot lifted DePauw into an 81-80 advantage with

2:15 remaining in the extra period. After the Spartans' Wes Gardner missed a

jumper and DePauw's Alex Stewart rebounded, the ball was back in Moore's hands.

The right-hander drove to his left into the lane and made a twisting,

acrobatic, 10-foot jumper.

Manchester missed again, DePauw rebounded and Moore was fouled. He made

two free throws at 1:10 for a five-point advantage.

The Spartans (2-3) closed the gap on a basket by center Eric Berger at

51.6 and his free throw at 14.6. Berger missed the second shot from the line and DePauw's Reid Sakel emerged from a scramble for the rebound with the ball.

Sakel was fouled and made a free throw for an 86-83 advantage. Sakel

missed the second, but Brian Oilar rebounded. Alex Stewart's two free throws with 9.9 seconds remaining closed out the Spartans.

Moore scored 22 points. He was 6-of-9 on 3-pointers, 7-of-10 overall, and

also had 10 assists. Moore was named to the five-player all-tournament team.

"He had a stretch where he made big shots and kind of saved us," DePauw

coach Bill Fenlon said. "Somebody else could have scored on those possessions,

but it's nice that he did. He's got great skill. He knows what's going on

with his teammates. He's got a chance to be a pretty special guy."

Moore's NBA-length 3-pointer for the lead came at a critical juncture.

DePauw had taken a 76-73 lead in regulation on Stephen Schott's two free throws

with 11.9 remaining, but Manchester's David Mattingly made a 3-pointer at the

buzzer to send the game into overtime.

Schott staked DePauw to the lead in overtime with two free throws before

Manchester gained the momentum with four straight points for an 80-78

advantage. DePauw regained the momentum on Moore's shot.

Fenlon was particularly proud of how the Tigers responded in overtime.

"When they hit that three, it would have been easy to tuck it in," Fenlon

said. "I thought we handled it really well. We just kept playing."

Schott, a 6-6 sophomore, also was outstanding. He had 23 points, mostly

on the inside, on 8-of-13 shooting from the field and 7-of-8 from the foul

line, and 13 rebounds. He was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

"He just gets better and better and he's four games into his sophomore

year," Fenlon said. "He carried us."

The Tigers (2-2) also received solid contributions from Brian Oilar, guard Alex Stewart (11 points), backup post player Matt MacDonald (10 points) and

reserve wing Todd Capes (seven points).

The 6-8 Oilar was given the primary responsibility of guarding Berger, a

6-8, 225-pound senior. Berger scored 15, but was only five-of-13 from the

field.

"I thought Brian did a fabulous job on (Berger)," Fenlon said. "Really

good defense. That kid's a load. He took a lot of stuff away from him."

McDonald missed last season with a broken foot and his return was slowed

from injuries in a car accident last summer. "I thought he had a great game,"

Fenlon said.

The Tigers outshot the Spartans handily from the floor (30-57, 52.6

percent to 29-69, 42.2 percent) and had a whopping 41-25 advantage on the boards.

But DePauw also committed 20 turnovers to Manchester's 10.

"It was a big difference in the game," Fenlon said. "When you out-rebound

the heck out of them and shoot a better percentage and it's that close,

something isn't going right. They had 10 more possessions than we did from the

turnovers."

Part of that is the price of playing with a freshman point guard infused

into the starting lineup. Moore had eight turnovers.

"We're just trying how to figure out how to play together," Fenlon said.

"Sometimes, we're zigging when we should be zagging. Moore's deal is he needs

to be a little more even with his play."

On this night, the good elements of play far out-weighed the bad and took

DePauw to a win in a close game that saw the score tied nine times and the

lead exchange hands 15.

"I'm happy," Fenlon said. "We needed to beat a good team. We lost to two

good teams in Michigan last weekend and I wasn't happy with how we played. It

was just the way we competed tonight that feels good."

At Neal Fieldhouse

Manchester 43 33 7--83

DePauw 44 32 12--88

Manchester -- Read 1-3 2-2 4, Gardner 6-14 0-0 16, Mattingly 7-16 0-0 17,

Berger 5-14 5-6 15, Kuhn 7-11 7-8 23, Hammond 1-6 0-0 3, Davis 1-2 0-0 2, Koziel 1-3 0-0 3, Plumlee 0-0 0-0 0, Grabowski 0-0 0-0 0, Kornexl 0-0 0-0 0, Totals 29-69 FG, 14-16 FT, 83 TP.

DePauw -- Oilar 2-4 0-0 4, Schott 8-13 7-8 23, Stewart 3-8 2-2 11, Moore 7-10

2-2 22, Sakel 2-5 1-2 7, Capes 3-4 0-0 7, McDonald 4-9 2-2 10, Brown 1-1 2-3 4, King 0-3 0-0 0, Stone 0-0 0-0 0, Totals 30-57 FG, 16-19 FT, 88 TP.

3-pt. FG -- DPU 12-25 (Moore 6-9, Stewart 3-8, Sakel 2-4, Capes 1-1, Schott

0-1, McDonald 0-1, King 0-1), MC 11-26 (Gardner 4-9, Mattingly 3-5, Kuhn 2-5,

Koziel 1-1, Hammond 1-6). Rebounds -- DPU 41 (Schott 13, Oilar 9, Stewart 6, Brown 4, Sakel 2, McDonald 2, Moore 1, King 1), MC 25 (Gardner 6, Read 5, Berger 5, Kuhn 4, Hammond 3, Mattingly 1, Plumlee 1). Blocks -- DPU 2 (Oilar 1, McDonald 1), MC 2 (Berger 1, Hammond 1). Assists -- DPU 19 (Moore 10), MC 20 (Mattingly 6). Steals -- DPU 5 (Oilar 2), MC 6 (Berger 2). Total fouls -- DPU 19, MC 21. Fouled out -- Schott.

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