Division II SE Regional: Moore scores 26, Trojans advance to finals

By UMO Media Relations
Published in Sports on March 16, 2015 1:48 PM

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UMO Media Relations

HARROGATE, Tenn. -- Junior forward Mike Moore dropped in 26 points and fourth-seeded University of Mount Olive ousted top-seeded Lincoln Memorial, 75-55, in semifinal-round play of the 2015 NCAA Division II Southeast Regional on Sunday evening.

Moore shot 3 for 3 behind the 3-point arc for the Trojans (30-3 overall) , who face Montevallo (28-6) for the regional title Tuesday at 7 p.m. The winner advances to the elite eight in Evansville, Ind.

"I came out aggressive after my performance yesterday (vs. GRU Augusta). I felt like I did not really help my team because I got into foul trouble early," Moore said. "My mindset was to come out more aggressive tonight and help my teammates out."

Dontrell Brite added 16 points and four assists. Jordan McCain finished with 13 points. Kendall Hargrove pulled down a game-high 16 rebounds and scored eight points.

UMO committed a season-low three turnovers.

"It's something we pride ourselves on," Higginbotham said. "Our assist-to-turnover ratio is one of the best in the country and that is something we take pride in. It's a credit to our guy's unselfishness ... 18 assists on 30 field goals, as a coach you cannot get any more prouder than that."

The Trojans opened the game with an 11-0 run, capped by McCain's spin-around layup with 14:04 left in the first half. Barely six minutes later, double-digit advantage swelled to 24-5 on Moore's slam dunk.

LMU (30-3) called timeout.

UMO entered halftime with a 27-18 lead.

Brite buried a pair of 3-pointers, Moore drained a 3 of his own and McCain connected on a layup to push the Trojans in front by 20 points with 16:05 remaining in regulation.

The Railsplitters made a couple of multiple-point runs against Mount Olive, which answered with dunks by Hargrove. JaQuan Blount's 3-pointer from the corner gave UMO its biggest advantage, 75-51.

"We really locked in tonight defensively and our offense fed off of our defense," Higginbotham said. "I'm really proud of this group we showed a lot tonight, but we are not done we have to get ready for a super challenging Montevallo team that has a big-time player."

Montevallo has won the lone playoff meeting against UMO.

The Trojans set a single-season school record for wins, eclipsing the previous record (29) established by the 2004-05 squad -- directed by then-head coach Bill Clingan -- that advanced to the elite eight in Grand Forks, N.D.

"It's a testament to not only these guys but the guys before us," Higginbotham said. "When I played and the guys that followed the Maurice Horton's and those guys, we have things that those guys didn't because those guys did what they did and we are thankful of what they've done to get us to here.

"This group has really bought into a program here and a brotherhood that everyone has the others back. Everything that Coach Bill Clingan did and what I have tried to continue, it is a program win. This team has set the bar really high. I'm proud of the team we beat and this team is just as proud of it, we are a family.

"30 is great, but I want 31".