Photo by: © Maria Lysaker
Moore is Better
6/17/2020 5:33:00 PM | Men's Basketball
College athletics, and the college experience, can be different for everybody. Some student-athletes stay within their team circle while others branch out to the student body. Two years into his college career, Rice men's basketball sophomore Payton Moore has proven to be the latter.
Growing up in Los Angeles, all Moore knew was the sights and sounds of a big city. In a lot cases, people like a change of scenery. But that was not the case with Moore, who knew that if he had the opportunity, a big city was where he wanted to go. Enter Rice and the City of Houston.
"I lived in Los Angeles pretty much my entire life. The opportunity to live in Houston was really exciting to me. Obviously, the change of scenery, but also, living in a heavily populated city and experiencing different cultures. It's far enough from home where it's still a transition. But also, it's just a three-and-a-half hour flight if I want to go back. So it's the best of both worlds."
Moore spent his first two years coming off the bench as he was playing behind three-year starter Ako Adams. Adams, who holds the school record for career three-pointers, was one of the leaders of the team since Moore stepped on campus and immediately showed him what it took to play college basketball.
"Ako's career speaks for itself. He was an amazing teammate to me. He always supported me. I would see him in the gym all the time by himself working on his game. He was very charismatic. But also, he just really wanted to win and wanted what was best for the team, even if it meant he wasn't on the floor at times. If I was playing well, he would always support me and vice-versa. So I learned a lot from Ako, just watching the way he played, supported me and carried himself as an upperclassman."
The support from Adams came to a head when, because of an Adams injury, Moore made his first career start at Middle Tennessee. He immediately paid dividends, as he scored eight points in a 91-83 victory.
An even bigger moment for Moore came early last year when the Rice played at UC Santa Barbara. It was the first time that he was able to play in front of his hometown friends and family. It would be a big game for anyone to go back home and play in front of their family. But Moore turned in the best game of his career. Not only did he score a career-high 20 points, but he led Rice by hitting a game-winning layup with two seconds remaining to cap off a 22-point second half deficit to give the Owls an 82-81 victory.
"It was definitely exciting. There was a lot of build-up for it. Obviously I had a lot of family drive down for it. I wanted to treat it like another game. I was definitely excited to play in Southern California, as it was the first time I played there in two years. The game didn't start out the way that we wanted it too. But, we clawed our way back. It was just another game, but it was exciting for me to play that well in front of my family. Most importantly it was exciting to cap it off with a win. It's great to have a good game, but if you don't win, it doesn't have the same feeling at the end of it.
It was definitely a special moment for me. It was one of the highlights of my basketball career. Santa Barbara is where I played my first AAU tournament when I was eight years old. It's just funny how things come full circle. For a lot of my family, that's the only game they will see me play in college. They still talk about it. It was an exciting moment to share with them and talk about when I see them."
With two years left, Payton knows more will be expected of him. Every player sets goals before a season, whether it be personal or team related. For Moore, those two are one in the same.
"I think my goals and the team's goals are closely aligned. We just want to continue to grow. We want to finish games. Continue to do everything the right way and have fun. I think that's an important part of this. Enjoy the ride (and) enjoy the ups and downs, work hard and prepare the right way."
A Sociology major, Moore has taken his time at Rice as an opportunity to get better in all aspects of his life. Whether it be on the court, in the classroom or with his fellow students, he views every day at South Main as a chance to grow.
"I look at it like every day at Rice is an opportunity to get better. Socially, academically, physically, mentally. Obviously, as a freshman, it's very challenging. There's a learning curve with everything. Everything is moving really fast. But then gradually things slow down. You learn how to manage your time better (and) how to communicate better. It's a lot easier for me now. The next step for me is to continue to grow into a leadership role. Continuing to communicate with my teammates and coaching staff, as well as everyone on campus. Just continuing to grow any way I can."
Growing up in Los Angeles, all Moore knew was the sights and sounds of a big city. In a lot cases, people like a change of scenery. But that was not the case with Moore, who knew that if he had the opportunity, a big city was where he wanted to go. Enter Rice and the City of Houston.
"I lived in Los Angeles pretty much my entire life. The opportunity to live in Houston was really exciting to me. Obviously, the change of scenery, but also, living in a heavily populated city and experiencing different cultures. It's far enough from home where it's still a transition. But also, it's just a three-and-a-half hour flight if I want to go back. So it's the best of both worlds."
Moore spent his first two years coming off the bench as he was playing behind three-year starter Ako Adams. Adams, who holds the school record for career three-pointers, was one of the leaders of the team since Moore stepped on campus and immediately showed him what it took to play college basketball.
"Ako's career speaks for itself. He was an amazing teammate to me. He always supported me. I would see him in the gym all the time by himself working on his game. He was very charismatic. But also, he just really wanted to win and wanted what was best for the team, even if it meant he wasn't on the floor at times. If I was playing well, he would always support me and vice-versa. So I learned a lot from Ako, just watching the way he played, supported me and carried himself as an upperclassman."
The support from Adams came to a head when, because of an Adams injury, Moore made his first career start at Middle Tennessee. He immediately paid dividends, as he scored eight points in a 91-83 victory.
An even bigger moment for Moore came early last year when the Rice played at UC Santa Barbara. It was the first time that he was able to play in front of his hometown friends and family. It would be a big game for anyone to go back home and play in front of their family. But Moore turned in the best game of his career. Not only did he score a career-high 20 points, but he led Rice by hitting a game-winning layup with two seconds remaining to cap off a 22-point second half deficit to give the Owls an 82-81 victory.
"It was definitely exciting. There was a lot of build-up for it. Obviously I had a lot of family drive down for it. I wanted to treat it like another game. I was definitely excited to play in Southern California, as it was the first time I played there in two years. The game didn't start out the way that we wanted it too. But, we clawed our way back. It was just another game, but it was exciting for me to play that well in front of my family. Most importantly it was exciting to cap it off with a win. It's great to have a good game, but if you don't win, it doesn't have the same feeling at the end of it.
It was definitely a special moment for me. It was one of the highlights of my basketball career. Santa Barbara is where I played my first AAU tournament when I was eight years old. It's just funny how things come full circle. For a lot of my family, that's the only game they will see me play in college. They still talk about it. It was an exciting moment to share with them and talk about when I see them."
With two years left, Payton knows more will be expected of him. Every player sets goals before a season, whether it be personal or team related. For Moore, those two are one in the same.
"I think my goals and the team's goals are closely aligned. We just want to continue to grow. We want to finish games. Continue to do everything the right way and have fun. I think that's an important part of this. Enjoy the ride (and) enjoy the ups and downs, work hard and prepare the right way."
A Sociology major, Moore has taken his time at Rice as an opportunity to get better in all aspects of his life. Whether it be on the court, in the classroom or with his fellow students, he views every day at South Main as a chance to grow.
"I look at it like every day at Rice is an opportunity to get better. Socially, academically, physically, mentally. Obviously, as a freshman, it's very challenging. There's a learning curve with everything. Everything is moving really fast. But then gradually things slow down. You learn how to manage your time better (and) how to communicate better. It's a lot easier for me now. The next step for me is to continue to grow into a leadership role. Continuing to communicate with my teammates and coaching staff, as well as everyone on campus. Just continuing to grow any way I can."
Players Mentioned
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