UTC guard Moses Johnson shoots over Mercer guards Linnea Rosendal (11) and Sydni Means (1) during the Lady Mocs' home basketball game against the Mercer Bears at McKenzie Arena on Thursday, Feb. 2, 2017, in Chattanooga, Tenn.Moses Johnson promised herself that she was going to take all of her official college visits before deciding on a college.
She took one, to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
She fell in love and never left, because it felt like home, a safe space.
Maybe in a sense, the feeling of home was something that Johnson subconsciously wanted. As she grew up in Gresham Park in Atlanta, there were a lot of times that her mom, the late Bell Johnson, would try to keep her in the house because of all the shooting and neighborhood violence surrounding the area.
She developed a love of basketball in middle school, following her five brothers to the neighborhood recreation center to play.
"They did a good job of protecting me," she said.
Basketball had become her place, her safe haven. She was home-schooled until she was in high school, deciding to go to Greenforest-McCalep Christian Academy, a small school with an enrollment of 513 students from pre-kindergarten through high school. That's where her career took off, leading the Eagles to their first-ever state tournament appearance her sophomore season, one of three consecutive the program would experience.
She was named all-region each of her four years of high school and played for the highly successful Atlanta Celtics in AAU, which helped in her recruiting process.
"My first day of high school, I told my coach (Allison Prather) that I wanted to play basketball at the next level, and she told me that if I wanted to play, I was going to have to work really hard because other players started playing before I did," Johnson said. "I had to work twice as hard to get there, so I did. I practiced day and night, with the girls and the boys. All I did was live and breathe basketball."
She chose UTC and then-coach Wes Moore, only to see Moore leave to take the North Carolina State job in the spring of 2013. She said she "cried" when she first heard the news, but talked to a number of people who told her to stick it out and gave the new coach a chance.
When that new coach became Jim Foster, she felt good about her choice, once she got over the initial meeting.
"You could tell he's very observant," she said. "He asks so many questions.
"It was scary, I'm not going to lie."
Johnson has maximized her time at UTC, both on and off the court. She graduated last May with a degree in psychology, while on the court she has been a part of three consecutive Southern Conference championship teams, including the 2014-15 version that defeated Tennessee and Stanford after losing five seniors the year before.
One of two fourth-year seniors on the roster, she admitted that Saturday will be rough.
"Every experience is vital, from the teammates to the trials. I put so much time and effort into this thing that I love so much," Johnson said. "To see a chapter come to an end, it's going to be bittersweet."
Johnson said she plans to apply for graduate school and work toward her Ph.D. in psychology in hopes of being a counselor. If an opportunity to pursue a professional basketball career exists, she plans on taking it.
She'll end her career as a player best known for her hustle. She took advantage of her scoring opportunities, but tireless effort will define her career.
"I just want people to remember I had a heart for the people I love," she said. "I love the fans and my teammates. I want to be remembered as hard-working, that I gave my all and had a true love for the game."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenleytfp.