Ki-Ki Moore, the top player on the Fresno State women's basketball team, will not return for her senior season -- a blow to the Bulldogs just as they are wrapping up the regular season and looking ahead to the conference tournament.

The university announced Friday that Moore, a junior in her second year of play in the program after transferring from Washington State, will skip her final year because of lingering injuries and constant pain. The school did not make Moore available to the media this week ahead of today's 2 p.m. regular-season finale against UNLV, but she is expected to talk after the game.

Moore, who played in high school at Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep-San Francisco, is averaging team-best totals of 16.8 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 3.1 steals per game in the Bulldogs' first Mountain West Conference season. Last year, she was the Western Athletic Conference MVP.

"I feel like it is never easy leaving something so special when the team and coaches are supporting you, but that's how bad the pain was," Moore said in a university news release. "It is the best decision for me."

Fresno State (20-8, 12-3) will enter the conference tournament as the No. 2 seed under first-year coach Raegan Pebley. San Diego State (23-5, 14-1), which has lost only to Fresno State in conference play, will be the top seed at the March 13-16 tournament in Las Vegas.

With an RPI of 96, Fresno State likely will need to win the conference tournament to receive a sixth straight NCAA Tournament bid.

Staying at that level next season is looking increasingly difficult.

Moore's departure along with that of senior 3-point specialist Rosie Moult will leave Fresno State without its two best players in what already has been a difficult transition for the new coaching staff.

A key player from last year's team, Madison Parrish, transferred to Fresno City College just before school started, citing the Bulldogs' coaching change and a switch to a slower-paced offensive system.

Ta'Nitra Byrd began this season as a starter, but was dismissed for an unspecified violation of athletic department policy.

Earlier this season, Moore talked about the difficulty of playing in a system that requires more ball movement, cutting in traffic and halfcourt sets as opposed to the faster-pace, dribble-drive, and 3-point-launching style of prior coach Adrian Wiggins.

Moore's scoring average hasn't changed, but her shooting percentage has fallen from 47% to 42.4%, including 34.4% to 22.4% on 3-pointers.

There has been no major slip in her numbers this season. She averaged 17.3 points in the second round of Mountain West play, while her shooting actually improved to 51% after a 46.1% mark in the first round.

"There is a lot that people don't know about this woman that would endear them to her even more," Pebley said in a news release. "She has soldiered through tremendous pain."

Moore will be honored at today's Senior Day game, along with Moult and senior Jeanna Furst.

Moore is the 18th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points and needs 31 to be the second with back-to-back 500-point seasons.

"I look forward to just finishing off the conference season strong and go into the Mountain West tournament playing with the same confidence we've been playing with all season," she said, "but not look past any team and try to get our first Mountain West championship."

Up next

Fresno State vs. UNLV

Saturday: 2 p.m.

Radio: KFPT (AM 790)