Lefty Moore Returns to the Cyclones

AMES, Iowa- Iowa State fans remember the 1980-81 season as an important year for Cyclone men's basketball. It was the first season of the Johnny Orr era and a new optimism was growing in Ames for the future of Cyclone hoops.

Orr would attest it was not one of his best teams, but he did inherit a senior point guard named Keith “Lefty” Moore, who would quickly become a fan favorite among the Hilton Coliseum faithful. A native of Detroit, Mich., Moore wowed fans with his ball-handling and shooting ability despite his diminutive size of 5-10. He ended his final year with a team-high 123 assists, which was an ISU record at the time, and averaged 9.6 ppg.

Now 30 years later, the 50-year-old Moore has returned to Ames to help the Cyclone basketball program and give Iowa State head coach Fred Hoiberg an assist in his first season. Moore will join the Cyclones as a student assistant coach while finishing his bachelor's of arts degree. It's an opportunity Moore will not take for granted.

“I'm really grateful and thankful that Jamie Pollard (Iowa State Athletics Director) and Fred allowed me to be able to do this,” Moore said. “Jamie did a lot of work on my behalf. I got to know Jamie over the last couple years and we developed a pretty good friendship. Coming back to finish my degree is something that I always wanted to do, and he's really made that possible.”

The Iowa State Athletics Department has an outstanding track record of helping former athletes return to school and graduate. Jeff Grayer, Iowa State All-American and the school's all-time leading scorer in men's hoops, finished his degree in 2005. He is a member of Hoiberg's staff in his initial campaign with the Cyclones. And most recently, Iowa State seven-time All-American and 1984 Olympic Silver Medalist track & field legend Danny Harris graduated from Iowa State in 2010 while aiding the Cyclone track & field program as a student assistant coach. Harris is now a full-time assistant coach with the Northern Iowa track & field program.

Moore's basketball resume certainly has been enhanced in recent years. He joined the Iowa Energy, the state's NBDL franchise in Des Moines, for their inaugural season in 2007-08. He was an assistant for the Energy in its first three seasons and also worked for the All Iowa Attack, an Ames-based AAU boy's and girl's basketball academy. The chance to come back to Iowa State was an opportunity Moore couldn't pass up.

“It's very important for me to get my degree,” said Moore. “I work with a lot of kids and I do a lot of stuff with younger people, and at times I almost feel a little bit like a hypocrite because I talk about the importance of an education and the importance of school. I was making a pretty good living doing some other stuff, but I have a son that's going to be a freshman in college this year, and we joke now about who's going to graduate first. It's really important, not just for me, but so I can set an example for my kids too.”

Moore had a positive experience competing for the Cyclones from 1979-81 after two seasons at Amarillo Junior College (Texas). Playing for Lynn Nance and Orr has provided the former Cyclone a plethora of stories. Moore still talks regularly to Orr and reflects fondly on his first season with the Cyclone icon.

“I grew up in Detroit, and Coach Orr actually kind of recruited me to come to Michigan,” Moore said. “I tease him that he couldn't get me to come to Michigan, so he followed me to Iowa State! But Coach Orr was the absolute greatest guy in the world to play for. He was so much fun, and to this very day, I talk to Coach Orr once or twice a month. Mostly if you want to find Coach Orr, you need to go to the golf course.”

One of the most famous Orr stories from the early years had Moore as a primary character. The Cyclones were playing Missouri at home and Tiger All-American Steve Stipanovich was attempting to inbound the ball with Moore defending him at the point of a full-court press. Stipanovich, at 6-11, was a whole foot taller than Moore, proceeded to bounce the ball with both hands off of Moore's head. Orr was so enraged he jumped out of his seat and ran across the court chasing the officials, picking up a pair of technical fouls and a quick exit from the game.

“After Stipanovich bopped me on the head, the referee was just standing right there and didn't call a thing,” Moore recollected. “I just kept playing, and ran down court. When I looked up, Coach Orr was standing at the free-throw line in the middle of the court just screaming at the referee. It was hilarious. I think Norm Stewart said he'd never seen Coach Orr move that fast. He said if he would have had the ball, he would have given him a bounce pass or layup!”

Moore has built a fabulous basketball resume with his work with the Iowa Energy and All Iowa Attack, but he is ready to take that knowledge to help out his former school. Some of Moore's responsibilities will be player development and player workouts, where he hopes to improve the overall skills of the Cyclone men's hoopsters.

Moore has watched and critiqued many of the Cyclone basketball players. He likes what he's seen.

“I feel we are going to have a pretty good team in the next couple years,” Moore said. “This first year could be a rebuilding year with the Big 12 being so competitive. I think with the system that Coach Hoiberg has put into place we're going to give these guys a chance to be successful. I like the attitude. It just seems like it's a totally different environment. I know that Coach Hoiberg is going to put our guys in a position to be successful, and it's just a matter of how hard we work and how fast we can get to our potential.”

Hoiberg has already made quite an impression on Moore as well.

“He's a really smart guy,” Moore said. “He knows a lot about basketball, and he's been around the game a lot. He's been in the locker room with Larry Bird, and a lot of guys like that. People say that he hasn't been a head coach, but he's been around the college game. He did a lot of scouting for the Timberwolves, and he watched a lot of college players, and I think the easiest part of being a college coach is the Xs and Os. To me, he has the people skills to deal with today's players. He has great communication skills, and I think the guys are going to like playing for him.”

With the start of the fall semester just around the corner, Moore can already feel the buzz and excitement around campus. He's happy to be a small piece of the puzzle in the Cyclones' rebuilding project.

“I'm looking forward to the challenge and being a part of the college atmosphere once again,” Moore said. “I've always kept in touch with the coaching staff and the players that have been through here. Now I'm just really looking forward to having the chance to work with these guys, and hopefully get the program back to where it used to be. “

Iowa State University Athletics

Lefty Moore Returns to the Cyclones

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