By Patrick DorseyThe Daily Northwestern

Consider Craig Moore’s struggles over. For one night, at least.

Heading into Tuesday night’s Big Ten/ACC Challenge showdown between Northwestern and Miami (Fla.), the sophomore was averaging just 6.0 points per game while shooting 21.9 percent from the field and 23.1 percent from behind the 3-point line.

But against the Hurricanes, everything looked different for the guard who was considered one of NU’s top offensive weapons heading into the season.

Moore made eight of his 11 shots (seven of 10 from 3-point range), hit a key free throw and pulled down the game’s clinching rebound as the Wildcats (4-2) dropped the Hurricanes (4-3) 61-59 at Welsh-Ryan Arena.

“He’s the whole reason why we won tonight,” senior Tim Doyle said of Moore, who finished with a career-high 24 points. “Without him, we probably would’ve gotten blown out.”

The Doylestown, Pa., native got everything started, putting the Cats up 3-0 31 seconds into the game. He went on to score 14 points in the half – as many as he scored in his previous three games combined.

But his biggest contribution came in the game’s final minute, when his 1-of-2 trip to the free-throw line put NU up by four points with 31 seconds left. And after Miami guard Jack McClinton missed a would-be game-winning 3-pointer with less than 10 seconds left, Moore pulled down the ball and threw it into the frontcourt as time expired.

After falling behind 37-36 early in the second half, Moore also hit three 3-pointers to help the Cats build a 57-47 lead with less than four minutes remaining.

But a string of NU turnovers – along with poor offensive execution and free-throw shooting – allowed the Hurricanes to get within one and later allow McClinton’s late attempt.

“That thing was dead on,” NU coach Bill Carmody said.

But the ball caromed off the back of the rim, allowing Moore to seal the game he nearly dominated.

Moore’s next step, he said, is to keep putting arc on every shot – something he’s been working on with coach Mitch Henderson after coaches noticed he’d been shooting too many line drives early in the season.

With that, Moore’s big nights might become a trend – and a way to continue NU’s three-game winning streak.

“Hopefully it’ll happen more often,” Moore said. “It’s about time.”

Reach Patrick Dorsey at [email protected].