The University of Wisconsin also announced its new men’s basketball offices would be named after the Howard Moore Family.
By Peter Cameron, BADGER STRIPES
Four Wisconsin men’s basketball players won conference awards this season. But with little fanfare, the Big Ten has bestowed a huge honor on another member of the Badger family.
The postseason award for best men’s assistant basketball coach in the Big Ten is now named after Howard Moore, the former player and assistant coach.
Last year was the first time the conference gave the Howard Moore Award. Northwestern assistant and former Southern Illinois head coach Chris Lowery was the recipient.
This year, Purdue assistant coach Brandon Brantley earned the award when the Big Ten announced its postseason honors earlier this week.
According to the Big Ten, the award goes to a men’s basketball assistant coach who
- demonstrates commitment to the development of student-athletes on and off the court
- has made a measurable contribution to the betterment of their community
- has shown a commitment to diversity and inclusion
“The recipient shall have made a demonstrable positive impact on the lives of those with whom they interact,” the Big Ten said in a press release announcing the 2024 postseason awards.
A native of Chicago, Moore played for Wisconsin from 1992-1995, where he was a member of the first UW team to play in the NCAA tournament in decades. He was an assistant there under head coach Bo Ryan from 2006-2010 before leaving to become head coach of University of Illinois-Chicago. He later served as an analyst for the Big Ten network, then returned to the Badgers bench as an assistant under head coach Greg Gard in 2016.
In 2019, a drunk driver in Michigan crashed head on into Moore and his family. The driver was going the wrong way on an interstate highway. His wife Jennifer and nine-year-old daughter Jaidyn were killed. While his then-12-year-old son, Jerrell, now a senior in high school, sustained minor injuries, Howard was badly burned in the wreck. He later suffered a heart attack that left him seriously disabled.
He’s still battling his condition, as well as the astronomical costs of ongoing medical and rehabilitation expenses, according to his website.
Click here to donate to Moore’s medical expenses.
Moore appeared in a wheelchair pushed by former teammate and good friend Rashard Griffith when he was honored at the men’s basketball game on March 2. At halftime, UW Athletic Director Chris McIntosh announced that the newly constructed men’s basketball offices in the Kohl Center will be named the “Howard Moore Family Men’s Basketball Offices.”
Badger Stripes 