Moore Lifts Mustangs To Tourney Win
Nic Moore saved his best for last Wednesday night.
Now, his Southern Methodist University basketball team, is headed to the Final Four.
Moore, a former star guard at Warsaw, hit a game winning 3-pointer to lift the Mustangs past California 67-65 in a quarterfinal game of the NIT.
Moore’s heroic triple with 6.5 seconds to play sends the Mustangs to New York. SMU will play Clemson (23-12) in the semifinals of the tournament next Tuesday in Madison Square Garden.
California rallied from a seven-point deficit in the second half to take a 65-64 lead on a trey by Justin Cobbs with 15 seconds to play. Moore then drained his third triple of the contest to give the host Mustangs the lead. Cobbs final shot hit off the rim for the Bears.
SMU, now 26-9, lost its final three games of the regular season to miss out on a bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Mustangs won three games at home, where they lost just once all season, in the NIT.
Moore, who sat out last season after transferring from Illinois State, finished the game with 11 points to go with three assists and one steal. Moore led the Tigers to a Class 4-A state runner-up finish in 2010 and was runner-up for Mr. Basketball in 2011. He is the second-leading scorer in Warsaw boys basketball history, trailing only Kevin Ault.
Markus Kennedy led the Mustangs in the win with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Jabari Bird had 20 points and Cobbs finished with 18 to lead California.
SMU coach Larry Brown gets a return trip to Madison Square Garden. The 73-year old Brown coached the New York Knicks from 2005-06.
The other NIT semifinal will pit Florida State versus Minnesota. Clemson, which defeated Belmont Tuesday night, is the only non-No. 1 seed in the semifinals.