When the greatest players in Syracuse basketball history are recalled - Dave Bing, Pearl Washington, Derrick Coleman, Carmelo Anthony, among others - one name is usually absent. Despite his anonymity among the very best, Lawrence Moten holds two distinctions these Orangemen of the past do not--he is not only the leading scorer in Syracuse basketball history, but the leading scorer in Big East conference history.

Such results were not the expectation when Moten arrived at Syracuse in 1991. Known as much for his football than his basketball skills out of high school, the Washington DC native was no better than fifth best in a recruiting class which featured well known prospects such as Anthony Harris, Lucious Jackson, Glenn Sekunda, and Lazarus Sims. In his opening game, Moten scored 12 points and picked up 10 rebounds in reserve action in Syracuse's opening season win over Cornell. It began one of the more remarkable records in Big East play. Moten scored in double figures in 31 of 32 games, 26 of 28 as a sophomore, and in every single game over his junior and senior season--he scored in double figure games in 118 of 121 appearances for the Orangemen.

Moten's first start came in the third game of the season, scoring 18 points in an upset of Florida State. He led the Orangemen in scoring in 10 games that season but was second in another 16, scoring a season high 32 against Pittsburgh at the Carrier Dome and a game high 20 as Syracuse won its third Big East tournament championship. Moten was named the conference's Rookie of the Year.

Moten's sophomore year would be a difficult one. Following on allegations in a book titled "Raw Recruits" alleging the use of a street agent to steer recruits to Syracuse and a series of reports in the Syracuse Post-Standard, the NCAA placed Syracuse on two years probation for what it called "repeated and conscious efforts by representatives of the university's athletic interests to gain recruiting and competitive advantages for the men's basketball program," ranging from free meals at local restaurants to $50 bills sent in Christmas cards to players. The probation ended a 10 year run of NCAA play for the Orangemen, but there was concern that some top players might transfer as a result. Lawrence Moten decided to stay, and his show of support for the program kept the 1992-93 Orangemen together. Moten led the Orangemen in scoring, including 12 games of 20 or more points, as Syracuse bounced back from a 1-4 start in Big Eat play to a third seed in the conference tournament, where they advanced to the final before being routed by Seton Hall, 103-70.

Syracuse bounced back in a big way in 1993-94 behind Moten and senior guard Adrian Autry, who combined for 45 percent of the entire team's scoring. Moten led the Orangemen in scoring through the season, averaging 50 percent from the field, with a pair of 31 point performances in wins over St. John's and Connecticut, 26 against Boston College, and 26 in the season finale versus Georgetown. Moten averaged 24.8 points in his final nine games of the season, as Syracuse advanced to the regional semifinals versus #5 Missouri. Moten and Autry combined for 60 points, including the last 29 scored by Syracuse in regulation and overtime combined, as Missouri prevailed 98-88.

In Moten's senior season the Orangemen started the season 14-1 before dropping five of seven down the stretch and bowing out in the second round of the NCAA tournament to defending NCAA champion Arkansas in overtime. He led Syracuse in scoring for a third consecutive year, becoming the first (and to date, last) player to do so since Dave Bing from 1962-65, and was selected to the All-Big East for a third consecutive season.

With an understated style of play nicknamed "Poetry in Moten", Moten's scoring style did not translate to the NBA, which may be one reason his reputation is not more memorable among modern Syracuse fans. The 36th overall pick in the 1995 NBA draft, he started just 21 games for the Vancouver Grizzlies in two seasons, then scored just nine points in eight games with the Washington Wizards. At 25, his NBA career was over. Despite his contributions, his jersey wasn't retired by Syracuse for another 20 years, in which time Moten had coached and held front office positions in two basketball minor leagues and served briefly as an assistant coach at Gallaudet University (DC) in 2015.