Tusculum College’s Kyle Moore has been named the 2009-10 South Atlantic Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Year.
Moore earns this honor for a second straight season and becomes only the third player in conference history to be named SAC Player of the Year multiple times.
He has also been named to the 2010 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Men’s Basketball First Team. Moore returns to the All-Region First Team for a second straight season. With the first team selection, Moore advances to the Daktronics Division II All-American ballot, which will be announced later this month.
Moore, a senior guard from Gainesville, Fla., led the league in scoring for a second straight year, averaging 24.8 points per game, which is currently third in NCAA Division II and fifth nationally for all NCAA divisions. Moore’s scoring average is the second highest in league history and fifth in school history. Moore accounted for 693 points this year, while leading the Pioneers to a 16-12 record and 10-6 in league play to finish second in the conference standings for a second straight season. His point tally this year is the second most in recorded school history and third in the league record book.
The three-time All-SAC selection established a new school and SAC record with his 117 three-point field goals made this season. His 4.18 treys per game average is also third in the country, while shooting 45.3 percent from beyond the arc.
In just 87 games in a Pioneer uniform, Moore connected on 306 career three-point field goals, which are the most in conference history and the second-most ever by a Pioneer. He connected on 43 percent of his long-range attempts at Tusculum, which is the fourth-highest average in school history.
In his three seasons at Tusculum, Moore scored 1,813 points, ranking him fourth on the program’s scoring list and the seventh-leading scorer in SAC history. He averaged 20.8 points per game at Tusculum, which is the third highest scoring average ever by a South Atlantic Conference player.
Moore has been the model of consistency during his career, scoring 20 or more points an amazing 45 times in his three seasons at Tusculum, including 19 times this year. He has also poured in 30 or more points on 15 occasions, including 10 times this season. Moore was named SAC Player of the Week four times this season and nine times in the last two years combined.
The 2009 Division II All-American holds the school record with his 447 made free throws. While at Tusculum, Moore shot 85 percent from the foul line (447-of-526), which is the second highest career percentage in school history and third in SAC history. His .862 free throw percentage this season was second in the conference and 37th in the nation.
He finished his career at Tusculum similarly to how he started it at the charity stripe. He opened his Tusculum career making his first 24 free throws. Moore finished the same way, connecting on his final 24 trips to the foul line. In his last 11 contests, Moore went 64-of-68 from the free throw line (94.1percent), including a string of 33 in a row.
At the end of the regular season, the South Atlantic Conference recognizes its statistical champions. The Pioneers had two players earn multiple honors, while the team cashed in on four team awards. Moore was recognized as the SAC Statistical Champion for points per game and three-point field goals made per game. Sophomore guard Justin Steigerwald from Cincinnati, Ohio, led the league in assists per game and assist to turnover ratio. The Pioneers led the conference in scoring defense, three-point field goal percentage, free throw percentage and assist/turnover ratio.
Moore and teammates Jimmy Boone (Greeneville, Tenn), Josh Bennett (Snow Hill, Md.) and Wes Taylor (Oregon, Ohio) were recipients of the SAC Senior Award. This group led the Pioneers to 62 victories, including back-to-back winning seasons. Last year’s 20-11 campaign was the program’s first 20-win season in 16 years. The team also earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament.