Wisconsin to honor Howard Moore and family on March 2 before Badgers face Illinois

MADISON – Anyone who was in the Kohl Center for Wisconsin's 2019-20 men's basketball home opener likely remembers the myriad emotions that overwhelmed players, coaches and fans.

The eerie silence before the game, out of respect for Howard Moore's parents, who were there to celebrate their son.

The tears during a touching video tribute to Moore, who lost his wife and daughter in a horrific automobile accident several months earlier in Michigan.

The cheers for son, Jerell, who wore the uniform number of his father and was UW's sixth starter that night against Eastern Illinois.

The atmosphere when UW hosts Illinois on March 2 could be as memorable.

UW officials announced Thursday that Howard Moore and the Moore family are to be honored before the game.

Moore's family and several of his former UW teammates are expected to be in attendance.

"Howard is slowly getting better every day and working hard to get back on his feet," UW officials wrote on one of the men's basketball social media accounts. "Our home game March 2 will be an opportunity to recognize the Moore Family and for Badger nation to show its support in Howard's recovery."

Moore and his family were driving to Michigan on Memorial Day weekend in 2019. They were en route to visit the parents of Moore’s wife, Jennifer, when their vehicle was hit head-on by a wrong-way driver just outside of Ann Arbor.

Daughter Jaidyn was pronounced dead at the scene. Jennifer survived the crash and was taken to a nearby hospital but was eventually taken off life support. Jerell suffered only minor injuries and followed the team throughout the memorable season.

Howard Moore suffered third-degree burns and then in June of that year suffered a heart attack after he had returned home. He spent more than a year in a long-term rehab facility before returning home in December 2021.

The Badgers dedicated the 2019-20 season to the Moore family and won their final eight regular-season games to e

arn a share of the Big Ten regular-season title.

The finale at Indiana personified that team's grit as the Badgers overcame a nine-point deficit in the second half to stun Indiana, 60-56.

The celebration in the UW locker room was emotional. Coach Greg Gard brought all three assistants – Joe Krabbenhoft, Dean Oliver and Alando Tucker – to the postgame news conference so their work could be recognized.

"As soon as I can, I am going to take that trophy over to see Howard and let him rub it, and kiss it, and hold it," Gard said, referring to the Big Ten trophy. "I cannot be prouder of these three guys that have been through hell and back in the last nine months that we had to face as a team and personally.

"They've stuck together. They've been phenomenal. I do not even have words to describe how good they have been."

UW's game March 2 against the Illini will be another opportunity for fans to remember the Moore family and that season.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: UW officials to honor Howard Moore before March 2 game vs. Illinois