By WILL GRAVES<\/p>\n
PITTSBURGH (AP) \u2014 David Dixon could have left. The thought crossed the Duquesne<\/a> forward’s mind a few times over the years. Maybe more than a few.<\/p>\n There might have been situations where Dixon could have found more playing time. Or more money. Or a higher profile. Or a mixture of all three. <\/p>\n Yet as each offseason came, Dixon couldn’t walk away from the school on a bluff overlooking the Monongahela River near downtown Pittsburgh. <\/p>\n So even as teammates who became friends dipped in and out in search of other opportunities, commonplace in an era where constant player movement<\/a> is the norm, Dixon stuck around.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like I have the equity here,\u201d he said. \u201cI feel I have structure, like I could play here. I didn\u2019t feel like my position was in jeopardy or anything.\u201d<\/p>\n That last part is certainly true. <\/p>\n When Dixon walks onto the floor Thursday to face Rhode Island in the second round of the Atlantic 10 tournament, he will be appearing in his school-record 127th game, a mark that may never be broken given the unprecedented roster churn in college athletics thanks to relaxed NCAA legislation<\/a> that allows athletes to transfer as often as they like.<\/p>\n The understated Dixon finds himself part of an increasingly exclusive club. The list of players across the country who have remained with one program throughout their respective college careers is dwindling. <\/p>\n There are fewer than five in the A-10 who fit that profile this season. The numbers at the moment are somehow even starker in high-major conferences like the sprawling SEC, which reportedly had just one scholarship player \u2014 Mississippi State’s Shawn Jones Jr. \u2014 finish at the same school where he started.<\/p>\n \u201cIt’s really rare to stay and play four years,\u201d Dixon said. \u201c(But) the fan base here, people love me. I\u2019d be going into uncharted territory if I left. I’ve got a lot invested here.\u201d<\/p>\n Putting ego aside<\/p>\n Dixon is a 6-foot-9 burst of energy. Could he have found a place where he’d play more than 22 minutes a night? Probably. Yet Dixon had already been down that road. The Memphis, Tennessee, native bounced between three high schools before committing to the Dukes. That was more than enough.<\/p>\n So Dixon did something incredibly hard at any age, let alone your early 20s: He placed pragmatism and loyalty over the voice in the back of his head that wondered what else might be out there.<\/p>\n \u201cHaving an ego made it hard,” he said. \u201cBecause I felt like as a player, I’ve done enough on the basketball court to where if I was to go, I could have played anywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n That is, if his body would allow him. Playing in the post at a wiry 215 pounds comes with a cost. For Dixon, the price was becoming a fixture in the trainer’s room as he dealt with various injuries. He wasn’t sure how that would go over elsewhere. <\/p>\n \n There were no such concerns at Duquesne, where Dru Joyce<\/a> \u2014 who took over as head coach in 2024 after mentor Keith Dambrot<\/a> guided the Dukes to an A-10 title<\/a> and school’s first NCAA tournament appearance<\/a> in 47 years \u2014 understood what he had in Dixon: a heady talent whose minutes needed to be carefully calibrated.<\/p>\n \u201cHe’s gone through everything as a college athlete (and) done it all at one place,\u201d Joyce said. “Every joy. Every pain.\u201d<\/p>\n An emotional climax<\/p>\n Dixon doesn\u2019t consider himself a martyr. Like so many others, he\u2019s made a little bit of \u201ccheese\u201d from his name, image and likeness<\/a> deal. And while he misses some of his former teammates, some of whom he still connects with over online video game sessions, he doesn\u2019t begrudge anyone looking for a better situation.<\/p>\n That’s just not him.<\/p>\n \u201cI play the games because I love to play basketball,” he said. “Now money is good, but it shouldn\u2019t be the first thing you\u2019re chasing.\u201d<\/p>\n What Dixon is chasing are moments like the one that found him at the UMPC Cooper Fieldhouse on March 7. On Senior Day last weekend with his family in the stands, the Dukes found themselves trailing Richmond by 30. <\/p>\n What followed was the greatest comeback in program history, capped by Dixon’s tip-in at the buzzer on a play that summarized his career. He didn’t touch the ball on Duquesne’s final possession until he raced in from the wing and extended his left hand skyward<\/a> just in time.<\/p>\n It would have been special under any circumstances. That it happened in his school-record tying 126th game in front of a home crowd that has watched his journey every step of the way \u2014 the other five seniors the Dukes honored before the game have played at a combined 14 schools \u2014 added a layer that’s hard to define.<\/p>\n \u201cI honestly thought about, \u2018Wow, I really went from coming off the bench and not playing that much to starting making plays like this,\u2019” he said. \u201cIt comes full circle.\u201d<\/p>\n A \u2018noble\u2019 pursuit<\/p>\n While Dixon does hope to play professionally one day \u2014 he pointed to Joyce’s connections to Klutch Sports owner Rich Paul, who grew up with Joyce and NBA icon LeBron James<\/a> in Ohio, as something he hopes to take advantage of \u2014 he is also on track to get his degree in sports marketing. <\/p>\n It’s one of the reasons he has never been bothered by the influx of new faces to the Dukes every winter. Even if the underlying message of the portal \u2014 that the coaching staff is constantly looking for an upgrade, including maybe over you and will use a considerable amount of their NIL budget to do it \u2014 can sometimes be a fraught one. <\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re giving up a lot,” he said. “A lot of transfers, they\u2019re getting paid more than guys who stay. So, the fact that you\u2019re giving that up for stability and playing for that same team just to be that leader, I think is a really noble thing.\u201d<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here<\/a>. AP college basketball: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll<\/a> and https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/college-basketball<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By WILL GRAVES PITTSBURGH (AP) \u2014 David Dixon could have left. 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