A quarter-century after he scored his final points for Missouri State and helped the Bears to a historic NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 run, Danny Moore will get his jersey retired later this month.
“It’s a great honor, especially to be able to celebrate with the team and to have coach (Steve) Alford coming in,” Moore said of a corresponding celebration of the 1998-99 Bears during halftime of the Nov. 25 game with South Carolina State in Great Southern Bank Arena.
Alford, now head coach at Nevada, and several of Moore’s teammates will be on hand for the 1 p.m. tipoff. Moore said seeing his No. 32 go into the rafters as only the fifth Bears player — along with Jerry Anderson (1952-55), Curtis Perry (1967-70), Daryel Garrison (1972-75) and Winston Garland (1985-87) — will be a bit emotional.
Sitting out a year was key to his development
Moore is one of the great scorers in school history, with 1,691 points in just three seasons. He came to Missouri State after one season at Miami (Ohio) University via a connection with Sam Alford, whose New Castle team lost to Moore’s Shelbyville team the previous season.
“Sam had an idea of what type of player I was,” Moore said of the legendary Indiana high school coach who came to Missouri State as his son’s assistant. “I think he knew I would be a pretty good fit for them. That was the connection getting me to Missouri State.”
A big man with a soft shooting touch, whether in the post or the mid-range, Moore said all his points would not have been possible without all the baskets he made in obscurity during the 1995-96 season. Sitting out games as a transfer, Moore practiced in front of empty seats and often was the best player on the floor.
Unlike today’s college basketball world, where players jump into the portal and often attain instant eligibility, Moore was relegated to the scout team, where he honed his game and made life miserable for Steve Alford’s first Bears team. He hit the weights, got stronger and learned Alford’s intricate motion offense.
“I had to sit out a year and I think that year was very important,” Moore said this week. “I was able to get back on track. It was Steve Alford’s first year and he was implementing a new offensive and defense strategy. I was able to take that year and understand everything he was trying to convey and his philosophy.
“Every day in practice I got to practice without any pressure. I was able to get bigger, faster, stronger by working out and that was big for me to hit the ground running my sophomore year. I think people don’t understand that sitting out a year, which you don’t have to do today, can make all the difference.”
Moore’s game reminded one teammate of Kevin McHale
Word spread among Bears fans as Moore worked over the starting unit during practice. Robert Wilkerson, a senior wing on that team, said he remembers sizing Moore up for the first time as the team began preseason. Wilkerson, who now coaches high school and AAU basketball in Fayetteville, North Carolina, was a returnee from the previous coaching regime along with center Johnny Epps.
Moore was big, but he was not exactly a blur of quickness. He immediately reminded Wilkerson of Boston Celtics all-star forward Kevin McHale.
“The one thing I remember is that he was so slow — but he was so effective,” Wilkerson said with a laugh. “So instead of ‘D. Moore’ we started calling him ‘Slow Mo.’ But he was so, so effective. He reminded me, his exact game, of Kevin McHale. He even wore No. 32, with the up-and-under move. McHale had all the post moves.
“He might not be the most athletic,” Wilkerson added of Moore. “He can’t jump over a phone book, but he could put that ball in the hole.”
Team chemistry helped the Bears excel
When Moore became eligible as a sophomore, he was joined by incoming freshmen guards and fellow Indiana natives William Fontleroy and Kevin Ault. The team went 24-9 and made the National Invitation Tournament that season, regressed to 16-16 his junior season and rebounded to 22-11 for the Sweet 16 season.
“I think about the team chemistry,” Moore said of the successful seasons. “You look at the progression when I was there. My sophomore year, we played very well. We maybe didn’t have all the ingredients, but we probably outperformed trying to get to the NCAA Tournament. It was a good year for the NIT.
“The junior year, meshing with some new players coming in and then senior year everything just came together. We had the chemistry of everybody coming together at the right time. Everybody took that year before and said, ‘Look, we’re not gonna let that happen, that .500 season. We’re gonna make it a special season.’”
Moore said sweeping the four other Missouri Division I teams that senior season — Missouri, UMKC, Saint Louis and Southeast Missouri State — was an early season highlight. Later came a Missouri Valley Conference regular-season run that came up just short of a championship as the Bears lost in overtime on the final night of the season at Evansville.
Making the most of their NCAA Tournament opportunity
Upon receiving an NCAA Tournament at-large bid — the last time the program has been to the tournament — the Bears made the most of the opportunity.
“Everybody did their part and we could play any style,” Fontleroy said. “We had all the pieces you needed.”
They beat Wisconsin in historically ugly fashion (43-32) and hammered No. 4 seed Tennessee 81-51, a game Moore called “magical.”
“They were playing the ‘Rocky Top’ song, all cocky, and we came out and just annihilated them by 30,” Moore said.
Then came a whirlwind week leading to a Sweet 16 match with No. 1-ranked Duke in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Blue Devils had five future NBA players in the starting lineup and, while the Bears hung with them for a while, Duke pulled away in the second half to prevail 78-61. Moore scored 15 in his final college game.
“That was probably one of the best weeks ever,” Moore said of the buzz in the Springfield community leading into the Duke game. “You have that week of going back to school knowing you’re one of only 16 teams left in the NCAA Tournament. It was kind of a whirlwind at the time. We were trying to relax, yet prepare.”
Still a key figure in the MO State record books
A quarter-century later, Moore is coming up on 20 years as Strategic Planning Capital Manager at BJC Healthcare in St. Louis. Meanwhile, he remains prominent in the Missouri State record book, not only on the scoring side but on the other side of the court. His 167 career blocks are second in school history, showing he provided a backline of defense for opponents driving to the basket.
But above all, the shooting touch and offensive toughness are why his number will hang among the program greats. Moore not only had a soft touch from mid-to-long range, but he got to the free-throw line 685 times (most in school history) and made 78.5 percent of his attempts. The 538 free throws made also remain No. 1 at Missouri State.
“Sometimes it gets overlooked, but one of the things I did was getting to the free-throw line,” Moore said. “ The number of attempts that I was able to get, getting to the line and capitalizing on making them, was big for our team to get the other team into foul trouble.
“I think it was about being aggressive. I think too many times post players aren’t aggressive enough in getting to the basket and spinning toward the basket to draw contact. Once I got it, I was going to find a way to maneuver my way to either get fouled or make the basket.”
Added Wilkerson: “I’m just so happy for him. That’s well deserved, based off what he brought to the program. I knew at the time that good things were gonna happen with Danny. I just knew it.
“I think if he had his daughter’s athletic ability, if he had her jumping ability, maybe he could have got more dunks.”
Could another Moore be a Bear?
Moore and wife Shawna’s daughter, Danielle, is a rising volleyball star. A junior at Francis Howell High School, the Division I recruit and her team will play in the Class 5 state semifinals on Thursday in Cape Girardeau. Danielle’s twin brother, Connor, runs cross country.
One Moore turned out pretty well for Missouri State athletics. Could another one be headed to campus, in a different sport?
“She’s getting offers from all the mid-majors. Hopefully, Missouri State can take another look at her,” Moore said of the 6-foot-2 Danielle, a lefty hitter who plays on the right side.
Ticket discounts available
Fans can choose from several ticket specials for the Nov. 25 game. In addition to free general admission for ages 12 and under, $5 adult tickets are available for all bleacher seats and upper-level seats (based on availability) for the 1 p.m. game.
