Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Josh Pastner and the Memphis Tigers have been struggling a bit to open up the 2013-14 college basketball season. They’ve beaten the bad teams that they have played, but struggled against their only good opponent, the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
In all of Memphis’ wins this season, one player, Michael Dixon Jr. scored at least 10 points. In the loss to the Cowboys, he only scored seven. Dixon isn’t one of the premier players for Memphis; the focus tends to be on Joe Jackson and Shaq Goodwin. However, Dixon is a key member of this Memphis squad.
In the blowout win against the Siena Saints in the Old Spice Classic, Dixon had 16 points from off the bench. If he can continue to play this well, Memphis may be able to make it to the Old Spice Classic finals, where they might get a chance to have their revenge against Oklahoma State.
If Memphis wants to get back into the discussion for being one of the top 15 teams in the country, Dixon will have to continue to play well. The American Athletic Conference is extremely difficult with teams like the Louisville Cardinals, Connecticut Huskies and Cincinnati Bearcats coming up on the Tigers’ conference schedule. Memphis is going to have to get a few non-conference wins if they want to make it to the 2014 NCAA Tournament.
Dixon may not be the player that everyone is talking about for Memphis, but he will be the player that makes or breaks this team late in the year.
Taylor Sturm is an SEC Basketball Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TSturmRS or add him to your network on Google.
