Sandusky's Moore will play for D-II Central State

SANDUSKY — De'Mar Moore Jr. visited Central State University last Thursday and found his new basketball home. The Sandusky graduate committed to play for the NCAA Division II Marauders and will report to the Wilberforce campus east of Dayton on August 8. "I liked the coaching staff and players. It's a good program and they have a great lifting facility and I fell in love with their gym," Moore Jr. said. "They like having a coach's son. You already know the ropes and they know I've been coached hard. They like the way I lead and facilitate." Moore Jr. chose CSU over offers from Central Missouri State and Division III Muskingum. He also had offers to walk on at Mid-American Conference programs Bowling Green and Eastern Michigan. Moore Jr. played AAU ball this year for the Ohio Basketball Club in Cleveland and caught the eye of the CSU coaching staff, which is led by head coach Antonio Davis. "They followed him through AAU and a few mutual friends reached out," said DeMar Moore Sr., Sandusky's head coach. "I sent them some film and they started following him this summer. They liked what they saw so that was pretty pleasing as a dad." Moore Jr. averaged 15.5 points and 7.7 assists per game this past season and helped lead the Blue Streaks to a 24-2 record and a Division II district title. He'll be joining a program looking for dramatic improvement. CSU finished 5-23 last season and lost their last 14 games. The Marauders compete in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, a league made up of Historically Black Colleges & Universities. Moore Jr. said he looks forward to joining an HBCU program. He said he wants to major in sports management or sports medicine. "I like being at an HBCU because I'm all about culture and they have a good culture there," he said. Redshirting might be a possibility, but Moore Jr. is looking to make an immediate impact. "They brought in a bunch of junior college transfers this year so he'll have to go in and fight for a position," Moore Sr. said. "Redshirting is a possibility but he's looking forward to going in and producing." Moore Jr. will play on the same Beacom-Lewis Gymnasium court as fellow Sandusky grad DaShanti Miller, who is a standout player for the CSU women's team. Miller averaged 7.7 points and 7.6 rebounds last season as a sophomore. "She told me congrats and it's a great program," Moore Jr. said. Edward "Bee" Bryant is another Sandusky connection to CSU. Bryant was a star player on the Marauders' 1965 NAIA national championship basketball team that finished 30-0.