Niagara College lands Moore

There were a lot of reasons why Notre Dame standout Braidon Moore chose Niagara College to pursue his post-secondary hoops career.

“It’s just the coaching staff that is there with Mike (Hurley) and Phil (Mosley), the players and how close it was to home,” the 18-year-old said.

The biggest reason was the coaching staff.

“After I met Mike and Phil a couple of times, I really felt that it was a good fit for me with the team and school wise,” the 12B student said.

Niagara College is delighted to land the 6-foot-4 player.

“I am really excited to have Braidon attending Niagara College as a student-athlete,” said Hurley, Niagara’s head coach. “As one of the top high school basketball players graduating in the Niagara region this year, he is ready to come in and contribute right away with his skill set, high basketball IQ, and strong athletic ability.”

The former travel player with the Welland Warriors, Blessed Sacrament Yellow Jackets and Southern Ontario Selects was MVP of the 2017 Niagara Region high school showcase, a first-team all-star selection in the annual Tribune Tournament and was the MVP at Notre Dame.

He had two universities that were interested in him before he ultimately chose Niagara.

Moore feels the extra year of high school has helped him mature as a player.

“I am shooting the ball a lot better from three and from the mid range, probably finishing down low more and I am better at ball handling,” he said. “But I am still working on everything.”

He is training every day at Notre Dame, Niagara College and the YMCA in preparation for his first year of college ball.

“They are planning to use me more as a shooter,” Moore said. “They want me to step outside the three-point line and shoot the ball.”

His role as a shooting guard will be quite a bit different to the many roles he filled at Notre Dame.

“I did everything with Notre Dame and that was my role along with a couple of other guys,” he said. “We had to rebound, shoot the three and score down low.

“It’s a different role (at Niagara), but I am looking forward to it.”

He knows what he needs to do to take his game to the next level.

“There is always room for improvement, especially in the way that you shoot the ball,” he said. “It will be how well I can shoot the ball because the three-point line (in college) is farther out.

“And I have to improve my ball handling if they are going to use me in the guard spot.”

Moore capped his high school career on a high note by helping his team win the Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association AAA championship by knocking off favoured Saltfleet.

“It was awesome, especially to do it with my best friends,” he said. “And to get to go to OFSAA (Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations championships) was a chance of a lifetime.”

Moore plans to study recreational therapy at Niagara College.

This past season, Niagara’s men tied for fourth place in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association West Division with a 13-7 record. The Knights went on to win the consolation title at the OCAA championships.

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