The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women's basketball team has already locked up a share of the Southern Conference regular-season championship. That's 11 in a row for coach Wes Moore, who's in his 12th season with the Lady Mocs.
With a win tonight at Western Carolina, UTC (20-7, 15-3 SoCon) can win the league outright and clinch the top seed in the SoCon tournament.
"That's what I'm proud of, the consistency," Moore said. "I think there are several teams in this league right now that are just as talented as we are, but our kids have won a lot of close games. They've just found a way to get it done."
The streak looked like it might be in jeopardy after UTC was blown out, 74-52, in its SoCon opener at Samford on Dec. 30. But the Lady Mocs have lost just twice since, thanks in large part to their ability to win close games. Seven of UTC's 15 league wins were by 7 points or less.
Mocs men's basketball coach John Shulman said Moore's greatest strength is his ability to recruit, but at the same time, Shulman added, "there's a lot of people out there that have great players that are still losing."
Moore has been named the SoCon coach of the year five times. He's had the SoCon player of the year seven times, with Damita Bullock, Katasha Brown and Alex Anderson winning the award twice. Senior Shanara Hollinquest is the reigning player of the year and as the SoCon's leading scorer and rebounder she appears to be the leading candidate to win the award this season.
Moore is 286-83 in his 11-plus seasons at UTC. With last Monday's win over Davidson, he clinched his 11th consecutive 20-win season.
The Lady Mocs went 10-17 during Moore's first season (1998-99) and have won at least 22 games each season since. Along with 11 consecutive SoCon regular-season titles -- UTC has shared the titles three times -- the Lady Mocs have won the league tournament and played in the NCAA tournament seven times.
"I tell Wes all that time, and he kind of fluffs it off, I say 'Wes, you got a dynasty going here, you're killing it,'" Mocs football coach Russ Huesman said. "To do what he's done with this program is just incredible.
"As an alum, I'm proud of all the programs here, but I think Wes and the women's basketball team have taken it to another level. And as a fellow coach in the athletic department, you're awful proud of what they've done."
One key to the Lady Mocs' success under Moore is the team's ability to bounce back from its rare SoCon losses. The Lady Mocs haven't lost back-to-back SoCon games since early in the 2001-02 season.
When asked about that streak, which is probably as impressive as any, Moore knew right away which games UTC lost: East Tennessee State and the College of Charleston.
Moore said the streaks and the tradition weigh on him more heavily than they do his players, some of whom were only 8 years old when they began.
"We see everybody's 'A' game and everybody circles that date on the schedule, and they bring it," Moore said. "That's tough on our freshmen who have no clue why everybody wants to beat them so badly."