Moorpark Falls Apart at Line in 62-60 Loss

Free-throw shooting, long a strong suit of the Moorpark College men’s basketball team, served to undermine the Raiders in the first round of the Crown City Classic at Pasadena City College on Wednesday.

The Raiders missed 3 of 5 free throws down the stretch and Mike Fromme converted a 3-point shot with 1 second remaining as Mt. San Antonio College erased a 10-point deficit in the final 4 minutes to post a 62-60 victory.

“When it left his hand, I knew it was good. That’s basketball,” Moorpark Coach Al Nordquist said of Fromme’s shot.

Nordquist could not have been as confident watching his own players at the free-throw line. The normally reliable Raiders, who entered the game shooting 72% from the free-throw line, allowed Mt. SAC to mount its rally by misfiring in crucial situations in the final minutes.

Strike one against the “body-alignment” method. Nordquist has long been an advocate of the theory, which stresses keeping the body straight while shooting free throws.

“There’s only four ways you can miss--short, long, right and left,” Nordquist said. “If you shoot straight, you only can miss two ways.”

Moorpark, which plays in the consolation bracket at 5 p.m. today, had battled back from a 13-point second-half deficit largely on the outside shooting of Sean Young, who scored 14 second-half points, including 4 3-point baskets.

The Raiders led, 56-46, on Roger Thomas’ jump shot with 4 minutes remaining, but Young missed the front end of a 1-and-1 and Greg Taylor was short on the front end of another 1-and-1 with 2:46 left.

Alex Porter gave Moorpark at 60-57 lead on a pair of foul shots with 47 seconds left, but after Mt. SAC’s Randy Shanklin scored on a follow shot, Porter missed the front end of a 1-and-1 to set the stage for Fromme’s game-winner.

“We choked on (3) straight free throws at the end,” Nordquist said. “You just have to have confidence at the line.”

Thomas and Young each scored 14 points to lead Moorpark.