NORTON SHORES - The Reeths-Puffer boys basketball team may have lost on Tuesday night, 56-46 to Mona Shores, but there was still a big reason for the Rockets to celebrate a huge individual accomplishment.
With 6:37 remaining in the third quarter, senior Marvin Moore hit a mid-range jumper to reach to the 1,000-point mark in his amazing career.
Moore is only the ninth Rocket to hit the 1,000 point mark in the program's long history, and the first since Travis Ambrose reached the milestone in 2024.
“lt’s amazing,” Moore said about joining the prestigious group. “It’s surreal. It’s really all possible because of my teammates, though. Especially in my younger years, having those older teammates just take me under their wings really helped me learn.”
Marvin Moore, right, the ninth R-P player to reach 1,000 points. Photo/Jeremy Clark
The R-P 1,000-point club includes Moore’s head coach, JR Wallace, and he said the accomplishment speaks to the type of player and person that Moore is.
“In a storybook scenario, we’d have gotten the win to go with this," Wallace said. "But that’s such a great accomplishment for him. To get 1,000 points and be the good human and player that he is, is awesome. I’m especially proud to welcome him into the club, and I’m excited to celebrate that later this week.”
Moore, who has been on the varsity roster since late in his freshman season, said he never would have dreamed of reaching 1,000 points back then.
“I don’t think I thought anything like this was possible," he said. "I was barely playing. During my freshman year, I was the sixth man during districts. So that was fun, but I don't think I was scoring more than five points a game.”
Moore gets a shot off over a defender. Photo/Jeremy Clark
Moore reached 1,000 points while playing under a bit of extra pressure, particularly this season. He's the top point producer on a very young, largely inexperienced R-P squad, and in many games he has to score a lot to give the Rockets a chance to win.
On the other hand, as the point guard, he has tried to distribute the ball to younger players, to give them a chance to learn and succeed.
“He just plays the right way,” Coach Wallace said. “A couple years ago, he was the young guy and now he’s the veteran. So he’s got to be able to help these guys build confidence by getting them shots. He makes the right reads and is really just a good basketball player.”
Moore said he understands the importance of scoring the points he has to score while helping the younger guys develop. In the end, it's all about whatever it takes to win, he said.
Moore takes a shot from three-point range. Photo/Jeremy Clark
“It’s extremely important to me to play the right way," Moore said. "It’s always about getting the win, and that’s not going to happen with me taking 30 shots. It’s me taking great shots over good shots and getting my teammates open more than anything, especially as a point guard.”
Moore displayed his scoring touch immediately on Tuesday, dropping in eight points in the first quarter while sophomore Hank Mitchelson added six. Mona Shores led 18-14 heading into the second quarter.
The teams played even in the second quarter and Mona Shores had a 27-23 halftime lead. Moore had six points in the second.
Mona Shores outscored Reeths-Puffer 16-11 in the third quarter to extend its lead to 43-34. Sophomore Rodney Walker had five points for the Rockets.
R-P's Artis Williams goes high for a shot. Photo/Jeremy Clark
The Sailors closed out the game by outscoring R-P 13-12 in the fourth quarter.
The Rockets are now 4-14 overall on the season and 2-6 in O-K Green conference play.
Moore led the Rockets on the night with 21 points, giving him a total of 1,006 so far in his career. Mitchelson finished with six points while Walker totaled five.
Reeths-Puffer will host Byron Center on Friday night for another conference clash.