MCC men defeat rival- EMCC

Eagles 67
EMCC 57

In men’s action, Meridian was looking for a bit of revenge following their worst lost thus far on the young season, an 81-67 defeat at Scooba earlier in the month. The Eagles entered the game at 3-3 and to a man, MCC head coach, George Brooks, would tell you that a win against their rival could add a spark to a young, .500 ball club about to play four consecutive road games.

Early on that spark would come in the form of MCC’s smallest player, 5 foot 11 inch tall freshman Otis Williams.

Williams connected on four three-point baskets and added two free throws to give MCC a comfortable 14 point halftime lead at 34-20.

In the second half, EMCC used pressure defense to climb back into the game. Both teams would play sloppy at times forcing turnovers.

EMCC used the sloppy play to get to within six points with 2:22 remaining at 60-54.

MCC’s Michael Cofield would use a baseline slam-dunk to put the game out of reach and give the MCC fans a reason to cheer as the Eagles put the exclamation point on a rivalry win- a 67-57 victory over EMCC.

Willimas led all scores with 19 for MCC as he hit four three point baskets, while Mario Luckett scored 14, Regis Hudleston scored 14 and Cofield ended up with 10.

EMCC was led by Jarvis Hill and Cataurius Taylor who scored 11 points each.

MCC (4-3) will play at Wallace-Selma Friday, a team they defeated earlier in the season, 78-63.

EMCC will play at Jones on December 3rd.

Lady Eagles complete season sweep of rival-EMCC

Lady Eagles 77
EMCC 55

(MERIDIAN)- The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles played their third game in the past four days when they hosted rival- East Mississippi Community College Monday night at the Graham Gymnasium.

MCC came into the game fresh off a sweep of the Rush Invitational this past weekend with wins over Alabama Southern and Wallace-Selma. Normally playing back-to-back games after a Thanksgiving feast and then turning around to face your rival would have most coaches worried, but not MCC’s head coach, Hilary Allen.

“We scheduled this on purpose,” said Allen.

“This is the only way to prepare for our State/Region tournament play. Then we’ll see the same thing, ballgames on three to four consecutive days.”

MCC showed some signs of slow play early, which probably had more to do with EMCC’s game plan than it had to do with the Lady Eagles fatigue.

“Give EMCC credit, their game plan was to slow down our offense which we don’t like to do,” said Allen.

“We like to score a lot and get up and down the floor, their offense is a bit more patient.”

Midway through the first half, Jennifer Wair put a little spark into MCC’s offense as she scored 13 points in the opening period.

Behind the play of Wair, the Lady Eagles managed a comfortable 39-27 halftime lead.

EMCC would put of the first points of the second half to close the gap down to eight points, but that’s as close as the Lady Lions would get as MCC’s pre season first team All American, NaDosha Strickland would score 11 of her game high 19 points in the final half to lead MCC to an easy 77-55 victory over EMCC.

Wair ended up with 15 points and freshman Tiara Parker scored 11 points for Meridian, while Kottia White and Sanitra Bush both led EMCC (3-6) with 10 points.

With the win, the Lady Eagles improved to 6-1 and completed the season sweep over longtime rival- EMCC, a rivalry which may or may not be played again depending on the shakedown of MCC’s future independent status away from the MACJC athletic conference.

MCC now prepares to play four consecutive road games, the first coming Friday at Wallace-Selma.

“We now have to learn how to play on the road,” said Allen.

“We’ll face Selma for the second time in a week, then we’ll have long road trips to Delgado (LA), Coahoma (MS) and Volunteer State (TN). We’ll have to grow up, but this should prepare us for road games in the conference.”

MCC’s next home game will open up their final season in the MACJC as they host South Division foe- Hinds Community College on January 7.

MCC Golf concludes Fall in the national top-ten

For the seventh consecutive time since the fall of 2001, the Meridian Community College golf team has finished the fall season ranked in the NJCAA’s top ten division II men’s golf poll. Following a successful fall schedule which included three top-three finishes, six individual All Tournament team honors and a team scoring average under 300- the MCC golf team is ranked #7 in the NJCAA Division II men’s golf poll.

MCC’s highest ranking came last fall when the Eagles were #4, before that their previous high ranking was #6 in both the 2003 and 2005 NJCAA fall poll.

Six time national champion Tyler Junior College out of Texas is #1 followed by three time defending national champion Darton College out of Georgia who sits at #2. John A. Logan College out of Illinois is #3, with Owens Community College out of Ohio at #4. MACJC rival, Mississippi Gulf Coast sits at #, while Oakland Community College of Michigan is #6.
The NJCAA also released their top 25 individual golfers among division II schools. Meridian’s own Joseph Konieczny was among those.

Konieczny, a transfer from Mississippi State University, had an adjusted tournament scoring average of 73.07 and sits at #16 in the NJCAA individual poll. He shot MCC’s low score at three events this fall, including two rounds of even-par or better and two All Tournament team finishes.

To view the poll, please visit www.njcaa.org and click on “Men’s Sports (Golf II).”

MCC set to host rival-EMCC

(MERIDIAN, Miss.) – The Meridian Community College basketball teams are set to host rival-East Mississippi Community College tonight in the final home game of the 2007 fall semester.

MCC split a pair of games at Scooba back on November 12th, with the Lady Eagles winning 72-59 and the Eagles losing 67-81.

“The Battle of Highway 45” is set to tip-off at 6 pm when the women take to the court.

After sweeping the Rush Invitational this past Thanksgiving weekend, the Lady Eagles are 5-1. The Eagles enter the contest at 3-3 after an overtime defeat at Marion (AL).

Following tonight’s match up versus EMCC, Meridian will play four consecutive road games which includes stops at Wallace-Selma (AL), Delgado (LA), Coahoma (MS), and Volunteer State (TN).

MCC’s next home game will be January 7th when they host their first MACJC South Division opponent of the 07-08 season, Hinds Community College.

MCC basketball sweeps Coahoma

The Meridian Community College Eagles got back in the win column this past weekend with a 56-47 victory over visiting Coahoma Community College.

Freshman Jason Windom led Meridian with 25 points, while Otis Williams scored 10 points and dished out 7 assists for the Eagles. Travis Thompson pulled 9 rebounds for MCC, while Windom had 7 rebounds.

The Eagles (3-2) return to action on Tuesday, November 20th at 7:00 pm when they travel to Marion (AL) Institute.

MCC lost to Marion back on Nov. 10th, 79-77.

The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles picked up their second consecutive victory with a 95-49 win over visiting Coahoma Community College last Saturday. Tiara Parker, of Meridian, led all scorers with 17, while Monique Clayton and Dana Parker added 16 points apiece. Jenia Babina also scored 10 points. Jennifer Wair and Jerrika Williams each pulled 12 rebounds. Nadine Serrano and Maranda Anderson had 6 assists apiece for MCC.

The Lady Eagles (3-1) host the Rush Invitational on November 23rd and November 24th. Games begin at 4:00 pm each day with MCC playing at 6:00 pm both days.

Three Eagle Baseball players ink with Nichols St, Tulane

MERIDIAN, Miss. – Three Meridian Community College baseball players made it official to continue their college baseball careers with university programs as announced by MCC head coach Chris Rose.

Scott Moseley, Jarrod Parks and Drew Snider, sophomores for the Eagles, signed national letters of intent Monday afternoon.

Moseley, a 6’2”, 160 lbs right-handed throwing, left-handed batting outfielder and graduate of Enterprise (MS) High School, signed to play for Nichols State University. He batted for a .384 average last season for MCC and posted a .584 slugging percentage. A speedy outfield defensive player, he reached safely 9 out of 11 base stolen base attempts. At the plate he had 28 hits, including four doubles, one triple and two homeruns. As a member of the Enterprise Bulldogs, he led EHS to the 2004 2A MHSAA State Championship. He was an All State and an All District selection. He was also named the MVP of the Crossroads Diamond Club All Star game after going 2 for 3 with four stolen bases.

Parks, a 6’1”, 205 lbs right-handed infielder and graduate of Madison Central (MS) High School, signed to play for Tulane University. He batted for a .408 average last season for MCC and his average was one of two above .400 for MCC, second only to the NJCAA baseball player of the year, then Eagle sophomore, Tyler Moore. Parks was third on the team with seven homeruns, also scoring 37 runs with 60 hits, including nine doubles and three triples. His 40 RBI was also third best on the team and he reached safely 10 out of 12 stolen base attempts. As a member of Madison Central he was named to the Clarion-Ledger Dandy Dozen, along with being named to the National Amateur Baseball Federation National Team where he was a two time All-World Series selection and named the NABF World Series MVP. He was also a two time All District, All Metro and All State selection for MCHS.

Snider, a 5’8”, 160 lbs right-handed infielder and graduate of West Lauderdale (MS) High School, signed to play for Nichols State University. He batted for a .386 average last season for MCC and his average was third best on the team. He scored 30 and had 56 hits which included seven doubles, one triple and one homerun. He had 24 RBI and a .480 slugging percentage and was selected as All Region for MCC his freshman season. As a member of WLHS, he was named an All District and All State selection. He was an All Star selection also in the Crossroads Diamond Club All Star game.

MCC basketball preps for Coahoma

(MERIDIAN)- The Meridian Community College basketball teams are preparing to host Coahoma Community College this Saturday at the Graham Gymnasium.

The Lady Eagles (2-1), who entered the 2008-09 season at #28 in the NJCAA pre-season pool, are coming off a 72-59 victory over “rival” East Mississippi Monday night.

MCC will be led by pre-season first team All American and returning All Region 23 sophomore, NaDosha Strickland. The Bay Springs native has been averaging just under 20 points per game (19 ppg).

Tiara Parker, a freshman from Meridian High, has been leading the newcomers with 12.3 points per game.

The Lady Eagles tip-off at 4:00 p.m.

After starting the season 2-0, the Eagles have dropped back-to-back ball games and look to get back in the win column Saturday night when they host Coahoma.

The Eagles (2-2) are coming off a 67-81 defeat at the hands of East Mississippi.

MCC will be led by Jason Windom, a freshman out of Meridian High, who has been averaging 18.3 points per game.

The Eagles play at 6:00 p.m. immediately following the women’s game.

MCC baseball to host Thanksgiving Camp

The Meridian Community College baseball program will hold its annual “Thanksgiving Baseball Camp” on Monday and Tuesday, November 19-20.

The camp will run from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. each day.

Registration fee for the camp is $75. Instruction, lunch and a t-shirt will be provided for all campers.

For more information please call the baseball office at 601-484-8670 or e-mail Coach Rose at crose@meridiancc.edu.

MCC splits with East Mississippi

Lady Eagles 72
EMCC 59

(Scooba) - The Meridian Community College Lady Eagles bounced back from an emotional, single digit loss to #1 Trinity Valley (TX) Community College last week with a 13 point victory over rival-East Mississippi Community College Monday night.

MCC defeated EMCC 72-59.

At halftime the game was tied at 36-36.

Lady Eagle sophomore, NaDosha Strickland, led all scorers with 20 points while Jennifer Wair scored 11 points.

MCC's women improved to 2-1 with the victory over EMCC.

The Lady Eagles play again Saturday, November 17 when they host Coahoma Community College.

EMCC 81
Eagles 67

(Scooba) – After trailing by 10 points at halftime, the visiting Meridian Community College Eagles spent the second half trying to make up ground.

Every time they got close, the EMCC Lion had an answer.

After MCC’s Otis Williams hit a 3-pointer to cut the lead to just 64-61 with under six minutes to play, EMCC’s Lewis Little hit two from beyond the arc during the 11-0 stretch.

EMCC defeated Meridian, 81-67.

For the Eagles, former Meridian High standout Jason Windom led the way with 15 points followed by 14 from Otis Williams.

With the loss the Eagles fell to 2-2.

MCC will return home Saturday to host Coahoma.

MCC’s Silva named All Region

Making the grade for the All Region 23 men’s soccer team was Meridian Community College sophomore, Terry Silva.

Silva, a Starkville native, led the Eagles with 18 goals and 6 assist on the year.

“Terry is one of the best to come through this program,” said MCC head coach Alex George.

“He has so much character on and off the field and gives you his best each and every match. I will miss him and he will be difficult to replace.”

Silva joined McKenzie Butler and Holly Head as fellow Eagles on the All Region soccer team. Butler and Head were members of the MCC women’s soccer team. He has many options to weigh as he looks to continue his playing career with several NCAA Division I offers.

MCC's George named Coach of the Year; Butler, Head named All Region

Following the most successful season in the programs history, awards and accolades roll in for Meridian Community College women’s soccer Coach Alex George and his Lady Eagles.

George has been honored with the Mississippi Association of Community/Junior Colleges Women’s Soccer Coach of the Year award.

George, who has been the head coach since the beginning of the Lady Eagles soccer program in 2002, led the Lady Eagles to their first ever postseason playoff appearance this year. MCC captured their first ever MACJC South Division title and then went on to win the MACJC State Championship.

The Lady Eagles “Cinderella” season came to a dramatic end a double overtime/shootout semifinal game of the Region 23 tournament against eventual champion Hinds. MCC ended the season with the program best record at 15-2-2.

Lady Eagles McKenzie Butler and Holly Head were both named to the All Region 23 team.

Butler, a sophomore from Pontotoc, has been a mainstay on the Lady Eagles offense for two seasons.

“I feel it has been a great honor to play for Meridian. I have made some really good friends and most of all this college gave me a chance to continue playing the game I love while getting a premier education,” said Butler.

“I couldn’t ask of anything more.”

Butler was also named the NJCAA women’s soccer Player of the Week back on October 10 after scoring five goals and four assists in two wins over East Central and Southwest Mississippi.

“I can think of no one else that deserves this recognition more,” said George.

“McKenzie has outstanding work ethic, total dedication to the game, and a personality that never quits.”

Head, a freshman from Vicksburg, compiled 27 goals in 18 games with 13 assists on the year.

“Holly, like all our girls, will do whatever it takes to make this team work,” said George.

“Her relentless drive to win separates her from average and places her in a class of her own. We salute Holly Head and all of the girls of MCC for a fantastic 2007 season.”

Lady Eagles play close with top ranked Trinity Valley, Eagles stay undefeated

Meridian Community College women’s basketball coach Hilary Allen got exactly what he wanted, a stern non-conference early season test for his Lady Eagles.

That test came in the form of undefeated, top-ranked Trinity Valley (TX) Community College.

"From day one all the way back in preseason conditioning we've been using this game with the top ranked team as motivation," said Allen.

Trinity Valley brought in a 2-0 record along with five national championships into MCC's Graham Gymnasium Wednesday night to see if Meridian's 103-25 embarrassment of Delgado last Saturday was legitimate.

The visiting Lady Cardinals set the pace early grabbing a 20-14 lead at the midway thru the first half.

But MCC's trio of Monique Clayton, Zircona Hopkins and Nadosha Strickland used their athletic ability to put points on the board and get to the free throw line. Behind their play, MCC tied up the ballgame multiple times in the first period before eventually taking the lead with 5:25 left before half.

MCC was led by Strickland who scored 18 points in the first half to give the Lady Eagles a 38-35 halftime lead over Trinity Valley.

"They exposed some of our weaknesses and we had to ask Nadsoha to do some things that she's not accustomed to doing," said Allen.

"Being the outstanding player that she is, she stepped up for us."

Apparently it took the visiting Lady Cards one half of basketball to get over their five and a half hour bus ride from East Texas and regain their top ranked form. Trinity Valley went on a 28-13 run to start the second half and take a 63-51 lead over Meridian with 10:00 remaining in the game.

"They are a national championship caliber team so you know they're going to make a run," said Allen.

MCC would put up a 12-0 run of their own and give the packed gym a reason to cheer as the Lady Eagles tied it up at 63-63 with under 5:00 to play.

"It showed me something about us to be able to answer their run," said Allen.

But the excitement would last but for a moment as Trinity Valley would hit three consecutive three point baskets to put the game away and win 78-69 over MCC.

"We played with the best team in the nation for 36 minutes, not 40, but 36," said Allen.

The Lady Eagles were led by Strickland who scored a game high 31 points. Hopkins had 10 points and Tiara Parker added 8 for MCC.

DeShawna Banks led Trinity Valley with 24 points as the Lady Cards improved to 3-0 and now venture to Florida.

The Lady Eagles fell to 1-1 and travel to Scooba to face East Mississippi on Monday night.

MCC Men 79
Wallace-Selma 78

Following their 79-78 victory over Delgado last Saturday, the MCC men took on Wallace-Selma Wednesday night.

The Eagles fell behind 18-7 early in the first half but fought back to take a 36-31 lead at halftime behind the play of Otis Williams who led MCC with 14 points in the first half.

MCC won the game by a final of 78-62 and improved to 2-0.

Williams led the Eagles with 26 points, while Jason Windom scored 16 points and Regis Huddleston had 15 points.

MCC will be in action again Saturday when they host Marion (AL) Institute.

MCC baseball players to ink with Nichols State

Meridian Community College head baseball coach Chris Rose has announced that Eagle baseball players Scott Moseley (Enterprise HS/Enterprise, MS) and Drew Snider (West Lauderdale HS/Meridian, MS) will sign with Nichols State University on Monday, November 12th. The signing will take place in the Graham Gymnasium at 12:30 p.m.

A detailed press release will be sent out following the signing. For more information, please contact head coach Chris Rose at 601-484-8670 or at 601-9175291 or e-mail him at crose@meridiancc.edu.

MCC basketball host twinbill Wednesday night

(MERIDIAN)- Coming off a 103-25 win over Delgado Community College, the Meridian Community College women's basketball team returns to action Wednesday night against one of the top teams in the nation- Trinity Valley Community College of Athens Texas. Tipoff for the contest is set for 6 p.m. at the Graham Gymnasium on the Meridian campus.

“We are extremely excited to be hosting one of the best teams in the nation- if not the best,” said MCC head coach Hilary Allen.

“I want to encourage all our fans to come out and support the Lady Eagles and see some outstanding basketball.”

MCC currently sits at No. 28 in the latest NJCAA women’s basketball poll while Trinity Valley is No. 2.

Trinity Valley is a five-time NJCAA women’s basketball national champion. Their last title came in 2004.

MCC will be led by a trio of sophomores, including: preseason first team All American- NaDosha Strickalnd; Jennifer Wair, who scored 14 points vs. Delgado Saturday; and defensive standout Zerconia Hopkins.

Having been successful in their season-opener, the MCC men’s basketball head coach George Brooks and his Eagles look to improve on the 79-78 home victory they posted over Delgado this past weekend when they host Wallace-Selma Wednesday 8 p.m.

Meridian freshman, Jason Windom led MCC with 24 points vs. Delgado. The Eagles only returning player from last season, Regis Huddleston, scored 18 points for Meridian, while Patrick McCurtis added 12 points for MCC in Saturday s win.

Both MCC teams are 1-0 on the season.

MCC Golf concludes Mobile Fall Classic

(MOBILE, Ala.) - The Meridian Community College golf team concluded their 2007 fall season at the Mobile Rams Fall Classic on Tuesday afternoon.

The Eagles used a final round team score of 304 to claim their fifth top ten finish of the year. MCC shot 607 (303-304) for the two day event and claimed 6th place.

Leading the Eagles on the final day was Joe Konieczny who shot a 2-over par 74 following an opening round of 75. Konieczny finished 10th individually.

Clay Bounds shot back-to-back 3-over par rounds of 75 for the 36 hole event.

Josh Ivy and Jarrod Moulds shot rounds of 77 and 78 respectively to pace the Eagles scoring. Ivy shot a 77 and Moulds shot a 78 on day one.

Bryant Self closed out MCC's scoring on day two with an 80, he shot 77 on day one.

The University of Mobile won the team title with a 580 (286-294) team score.

MCC will now break for the remainder of the fall semester before teeing it up in the Arizona Intercollegiate on February 5-6 in Phoenix, AZ to start their spring season.

Former MCC basketball player leads Pistons

The Detroit Pistons of the NBA started their campaign with a road contest. On last Friday, Ronald Murray scored 19 points off the bench as the Pistons came away with a 116-92 win over the Orlando Magic.

Murray is a former standout basketball player from Meridian Community College.

This past year, Murray was inducted into the inaugural class of the Mississippi Junior College Athletic Hall of Fame as one of three MCC members (Lou Hart, Cliff Lee).

MCC Golf in action at Mobile Classic

(MOBILE, Ala) - The Meridian Community College golf team finished round one of the Mobile Rams Fall Classic in 6th place.

MCC shot a 303 in round one of the 36-hole event to place them 17 shots back of the day one leader- the University of Mobile, who shot a 2-under par, 286.

Freshmen Clay Bounds and Joe Konieczny led the Eagles on day one. Both MCC golfers shot 3-over par rounds of 75. Sophomore Josh Ivy shot a 4-over par 76 and fellow sophomore Bryant Self shot a 5-over par 77. Freshman Jarrod Moulds shot an 8-over par 80.

The final round will be played Tuesday at Azalea City Golf Course in Mobile. Play beings with a 8:30 AM shot-gun start.

MCC basketball opens up with sweep

(MERIDIAN) - The Meridian Community College basketball teams both opened up their 2007-08 seasons with a victory.

Saturday afternoon, MCC played host to Delgado Community College.

The Lady Eagles won 103-25, while the Eagles won 79-78.

Both MCC teams are now 1-0 and will play Wednesday night at home.

The women face Trinity Valley at 6:00 PM, while the men will take on Wallace-Selma at 8:00 PM.

MCC Golf set to close out Fall season in Mobile, AL

(MERIDIAN) – The Meridian Community College golf team will close out the fall portion of their 2007-08 schedule with a visit to Mobile, Ala., to compete in the Mobile Rams Fall Invitational on Nov. 5-6. The 36-hole event will be hosted by the University of Mobile.

The Eagles are coming off a strong showing at the rain-shortened Indian Bayou Collegiate Classic in Destin, FL. MCC finish tied for 5th out of 17 teams with a team score of 302.

Head Coach Sean Covich’s squad will look to put the finishing touches on an impressive fall season. MCC has finished in the top five of their previous four tournaments, which includes two runner-up places. MCC’s B-team also claimed runner-up at the Mississippi College Fall Inv.

“We’ve played a highly competitive fall schedule,” said Covich.

“We’ve seen the #1 team in NJCAA Div II golf a few times, the other tournaments were against Div I teams, so I think that we’ve gained a lot of experience and confidence playing against the best.”

Meridian will continue to have the same lineup as the past four tournaments to cap off their fall season. Freshman Jarrod Moulds is coming off a top five finish in Destin, firing a 1-under par 71 in the one-round competition. He was named to his first collegiate All Tournament Team.

Mississippi State transfer Joe Konieczny, who has three top five finishes in four starts, will tee it up for the Eagles alongside Bryant Self who is playing in his fifth tournament of the fall season. Joining them will be Clay Bounds and Joshua Ivy. Bounds, notched a top five finish at the Northwest Shoals Fall Invitational in September with rounds of 67-71-74. Ivy’s fall slate has been highlighted by a tie for seventh in the MCC/Rush Fall.

“It looks as thought the lineup is finally starting to come together,” said Covich.

“These are five guys that are excellent students, represent the college well, and play the game the way it was meant to be played.”

In Mobile, MCC will compete among 17 other schools that will be comprised of mostly NCAA and NJCAA Div I teams.

The first round of the tournament will be played on Monday, with the final round being played on Tuesday. Tee time Monday is expected to be 8:30 a.m. CST.

MCC’s Strickland named Pre Season 1st team All American

NaDosha Strickland, a sophomore member of the Meridian Community College women’s basketball team, has been named a First Team Pre Season All American by the NJCAA.

Last season in the Region 23 tournament, Strickland scored 32 points, including hitting the game-tying 3 at the end of regulation and the game-winning free throws with 0.8 seconds left in overtime to carry MCC to a stunning 82-81 win over then MACJC state champion- Northeast Mississippi CC. She then led MCC to a Region 23 Runner-Up finish, just one win away from the NJCAA women’s basketball tournament.

The 5’9” Bay Springs native averaged 21.2 points per game and 10 rebounds per game as a freshman for the Lady Eagles. She also averaged over 3 steals per game in 2006-07.

After her outstanding freshman season, Strickland was named First Team All State and First Team All Region.

The Lady Eagles begin their 2007-08 season this Saturday vs. Delgado Community College.

Former MCC basketball player ready to begin career in NBA

(TORONTO) -- The Toronto Raptors (1-0) announced this past off-season they have signed free agent forward Jamario Moon to a two-year contract.

Moon is a former basketball player from Meridian Community College.

Moon attended the Raptors’ free agent camp this past summer and was added to the team.

Moon scored 10 points, with 4 rebounds and 3 assist in a 92-82 preseason win over Chicago on October 19th. He did not play in the regular season opening win over Philadelphia Wednesday night; the Raptors play again Friday night at New Jersey.

Moon will join fellow MCC basketball alumni Ronald Murray (Detroit Pistons) in the NBA this season.

A native of Rockford, AL, Moon has also spent professional playing time in the National Basketball Development League (Huntsville (Ala.) Flight and Mobile (Ala.) Revelers), American Basketball Association (Kentucky Colonels) and the World Basketball Association with the Rome (Ga.) Gladiators. He averaged 13.4 points and 6.3 rebounds in 21 games for the Gladiators, leading them to the 2005 WBA Championship.

He was an early entry candidate for the 2001 NBA Draft, but was not selected. According to Meridian head coach George Brooks, “Moon was the most talented player he had ever coached” (according to NBA.com). In his one and only season at Meridian, Moon averaged 20.8 points and 8.7 rebounds.

Moon, 6-foot-8, 205 pounds, saw action in 44 games with the Continental Basketball Association’s Albany (N.Y.) Patroons in 2006-07. He finished seventh in the CBA in scoring (18.8), fifth in rebounding (7.8), third in steals (2.0) and second in blocks (2.4). He also ranked fifth in the league in three-point field goal percentage at .401 (73-182) and shot .503 per cent (316-628) from the field. He was named the CBA Defensive Player of the Year and earned first-team All-CBA honors.

Following his stint in the CBA, Moon joined the Gary (Ind.) Steelheads of the United States Basketball League where he averaged 16.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 2.1 blocks in 22 contests.