Duo of Moore, Schott scores 42, lifts Tigers over Lynx, 87-56

Rhodes College's Lynx could pick their poison Friday night at Neal Fieldhouse. Play zone and bottle up DePauw's 6-6 center Steve Schott or play man-to-man to stop guard Mike Moore. The Lynx never figured it out.

Moore scored 23 points and passed out seven assists, while Schott tossed in 19 points and grabbed 19 rebounds while leading DePauw to an 87-56 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference victory.

DePauw never trailed in the game, going inside to Schott for its first two buckets. Then Moore made the first of three steals and converted it into a lay up, then it was back to Schott for hook shot and 8-2 lead.

"This is probably as good a night as we've had concentrating on just [getting the ball inside]," DePauw coach Bill Fenlon said.

Scott had 10 of his 19 points at halftime, while Moore had six of his seven assists and was 4-9 shooting from the floor.

Rhodes, led by forward Cory Smith with 17 points, stayed within 10 points until the final 7:30 of the half. DePauw went on a 14-6 run, turning an eight-point game into a 44-28 halftime margin.

Ryan Werntz started DePauw's run with a three, then Moore found Tom Callen with an ally-oop pass. Werntz and Steve Lemasters hit back-to-back threes. Inside buckets by Schott and Brian Oilar and a deuce from Moore set halftime score.

What broke the game open the second half was the combination of Moore's explosion and DePauw's defense.

Moore scored DePauw's first 10 points of the second half, scooping a shot through a web of arms for the opening bucket. The 5-8 junior capped the run with back-to-back threes, one from beyond NBA-length to put the Tigers up 54-32.

"I was getting some open looks in the first half, they just weren't falling. Coach always tells me to stay with my shot and I stayed with it in the second half they just started falling for me," Moore said.

"Mike was unbelievable the first five minutes of the second half. [But] what was going on on the other end is what allows you to extend the lead. You're also stopping them," Fenlon said.

"[Moore] is scoring baskets and you're stopping them on the other end and then all of a sudden you've got the lead to where it's going to be pretty hard for them to come back."

The point of no-return for Rhodes came with 11:52 to play. Schott scored a reverse layup and hit two free throws to put the Tigers ahead 67-37. Schott scored DePauw's next five points and two free throws by Moore gave the Tigers a 73-39 pillow with 9:40 to play.

At DePauw

Rhodes (56) -- Thompson 1-5 1-2 3, Hoskins 2-6 1-2 5, Smith 6-13 5-7 17, Long 1-4 0-0 2, Hamilton 5-11 2-2 13, Seberion 1-2 0-0 2, Shroyer 1-3 0-0 2, Ollie 1-5 1-2 3, Eberle 0-1 0-0 0, Wilson 3-3 0-5 6, Cunningham 0-3 1-2 1, Bledsoe 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 22-60 FG, 11-22 FT, 56 TP.

DePauw (87) -- Callen 3-3 1-2 8, Oilar 1-5 0-0 2, Schott 8-9 3-4 19, Moore 8-15 4-5 23, Werntz 4-9 0-0 12, Simpson 0-0 0-0 0, Wills 0-1 0-0 0, Russell 0-2 0-0 0, Stone 0-1 5-6 5, Gold 2-4 0-0 6, Gray 0-1 0-0 0, Lemasters 2-6 0-0 6, Sever 2-3 0-1 4, Bergfeld 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 31-62 FG, 13-18 FT, 87 TP.

Halftime score: DePauw 44, Rhodes College 28

3Pt. Goals -- RC 1-13 (Hamilton 1-2, Ollier 0-5, Thompson 0-2, Long 0-2, Hoskins 0-1, Shroyer 0-1), DPU 12-30 (Werntz 4-8, Moore 3-10, Gold 2-3, Lemasters 2-6, Callen 1-1, Russell 0-1, Stone 0-1). Total fouls -- RC 18, DPU 17. Fouled out: None. Turnovers -- RC 12, DPU 13. Rebounds -- RC 31 (Thompson 7), DPU 44 (Schott 8, Oilar 7). Assists: RC 6 (Thompson, Long 2), DPU 15 (Moore 7). Steals: RC 5 (Saberion 2), DPU 5 (Moore 3). Blocked shots: RC 1 (Hamilton), DPU 3 (Gray 2).

Next game -- DePauw (17-4, 9-2 in SCAC) will host Birmingham Southern at 3 p.m. Sunday.