He will take over as the school’s all-time men’s basketball leader in games played with 128 when No. 7 seed Duquesne opens play in the Atlantic 10 Tournament on Thursday against No. 10 Rhode Island at PPG Paints Arena.
But there’s more. Much more. As in a lot.
And some of what senior forward David Dixon has accomplished in four years at Duquesne doesn’t always show up on paper.
“When you think about the impact that Dave Dixon has had on this program … This isn’t the same Duquesne of the ’80s and ’90s,” coach Dru Joyce III said. “Nothing against those teams. They came in here and worked hard. They just didn’t get the results they wanted. Dave is behind the change. When it comes to the impact that he’s made — showing up early, sacrificing his body, being one of the best rebounders and shot-blockers — he deserves some credit.”
Dixon is in fast company. He just joined former Dukes great Damian Saunders this season as the only players in program history to eclipse 100 blocks and dunks each in a career.
Both guys wore Duquesne uniforms for four years, more commonly done in Saunders’ era, though, well before the advent of the NCAA transfer portal.
Where Saunders was voted to the all-A-10 defensive team, Dixon again was snubbed by the conference Thursday, when the league’s annual postseason awards were announced.
It’s part of what makes Dixon’s story so impressive. Well, at least one of the things. The stuff Dixon has done to contribute over the years — big and small — is immeasurable.
Just last Saturday in a 79-77 victory against Richmond at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, he raced into the lane untouched to tip-in a missed shot just before the final buzzer. It capped a massive rally that saw Duquesne (17-15) become just the fourth Division I team — ever — to overcome a 30-point deficit and win.
On Duquesne’s senior day, no less.
And in front of most of his immediate family, including his ailing, 74-year-old father, who hadn’t seen his son play since a trip to Omaha, Neb., in 2024 for the Dukes’ first NCAA Tournament appearance in 47 years.
Dixon’s buzzer-beater has resonated around campus. It was No. 2 on ESPN SportsCenter’s Top 10 Plays, the second time the Memphis, Tenn., native has made the nightly segment.
“It was a big moment, and I do use it as fuel,” Dixon said. “But I can do more. Maybe there’s something better. I’ve learned from it, but I’m not going to dwell on it.”
He and his teammates have bigger things in mind. Like winning Thursday’s second-round game against Rhode Island (16-15), which came into Duquesne and beat the Dukes only three days prior to that electric Saturday afternoon triumph at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.
Can something else eye-popping happen for Dixon at a stone’s throw from UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, when the A-10 Tournament heads to the second day of its second appearance at PPG Paints Arena, a building that’s stood since 2010?
Joyce joked with reporters following a recent morning practice at “The Coop,” when he was asked how Dixon was handling the aftermath of such a highly publicized play.
“As long as you guys stop asking me questions about him, he’ll be great, and I won’t have to do anything,” Joyce said, smiling.
Joyce’s tone then changed.
“Dave knew after the Richmond game there’s still one more game promised to him,” he said. “Now, we’re in a situation where it’s one game at a time. You don’t get the next one unless you win. He understands that urgency, so he is ready to go and he’s shared that testament with the team, too.”
Dixon almost didn’t return to Duquesne for his final college season. He wrestled with the decision, and he prayed about it.
“My dad, he’s old school,” Dixon said. “He doesn’t really make much of the whole transfer portal thing. He wanted me to stay because he felt that Duquesne gave me a chance.
“And they did.”
Richard Dixon suggested his son pray about it.
“He said, ‘If you’re struggling that much,’ ” Dave Dixon said his dad told him, “ ‘just pray about it. Leave it to God to give you a symbol, to give you a sign of what you need to do and what’s the best plan for you.’
“I prayed about it. I felt like listening to all these people’s opinions was just putting me in a bad place because all I did was sit around and think. And that just made me depressed. It messed me up.”
A whole season since has gone by — his final one in college. Soon, it’ll be time to move on.
“I’m basically playing for a job,” said Dixon, who doesn’t hide his desire for a shot at the NBA. “I feel good about my decision. Now that I’ve gotten to this point, I feel like I made the right one, because I probably wouldn’t have gotten as much love anywhere else as I did here.”