NOTHING FOR GRANTED
After month-long quarantine, CSUB guard Dixon taking
Jasmin Dixon had reached her breaking point. That Dixon, an Independence High School alum and current junior guard for the Cal State Bakersfield women’s basketball team, was feeling stir crazy was not a surprise.
While the entire Roadrunner team was forced to quarantine for two weeks in December, Dixon’s time in isolation became extended. Though never testing positive for COVID-19 herself, she did come in contact with someone who had, sending her back into lockdown for two additional weeks.
Throughout the process, Dixon, who spent Christmas by herself, was unable to have direct contact with anyone, relying on friends to drop food off at her door and leave before she could answer. And with CSUB on winter break, she wasn’t even able to occupy herself with schoolwork.
With her days consisting of little more than stationary workouts and America’s Next Top Model marathons, Dixon’s frustrations peaked on Jan. 1.
When her teammates finally returned to the court for their Big West opener, a frustrated Dixon could only watch in disappointment, unable to contribute in what became a 61-57 loss to Long Beach State.
“It was really tough for me seeing them play for the first time and not being able to be there,” Dixon said. “It was something that I had no control over so it was really tough to watch them play without me. That was the hardest thing for me throughout the whole process.”
Unsurprisingly, Dixon wasn’t looking to ease herself back into action after being cleared to return on Jan. 14.
More than an hour before the team was set to practice, Dixon was already in the gym, thrilled to work with coaches on numerous conditioning drills in a setting much more spacious than her bedroom.
“It was a huge sense of relief because that was the end goal and ( Jan. 14) was the day I was going to get back,” she said. “I got the call saying I was cleared to go practice and I was ready to go.”
That energy carried over into the next day.
In her first game in over a month, Dixon chipped in a season-high eight points, hitting a pair of 3-pointers in 20 minutes off the bench in a 64-57 win over Hawaii.
But as is normally the case with her, Dixon’s presence was most felt on the defensive end. She recorded four steals, including a swipe of Warrior forward Amy Atwell, who after pulling down a rebound, failed to see Dixon slashing back towards the ball on an outlet pass, turning a steal into an uncontested layup in the second quarter.
Though her stats (one point, one steal, zero field goal attempts) were less impressive, Dixon still played a key role in forcing Hawaii into 22 turnovers the following day. Her sound perimeter defense
proved key as CSUB was able to earn a 51-43 win despite opening the game with 12 consecutive missed shots.
Relying on starting point guard Lexus Green to bring high energy on the offensive end, CSUB coach Greg McCall says Green tended to wear down when she also had to defend the opponent’s top scorer. But with Dixon returning, McCall is excited he can once again put his players in their most comfortable roles.
“In that second game against Hawaii, ( Jasmin) didn’t attempt a shot, but the effect that she had on the game was huge,” McCall said. “Being able to lock in on their point guard, being able to give their point guard all kinds of problems (was big). She takes a lot of pressure off of (everybody) when it comes to defensive assignments.”
Still trying to get back to full strength from a conditioning standpoint, Dixon hopes to take further strides this weekend. She and the Roadrunners, who are 4-4 overall and 2-2 in conference play, have a shot to get over .500 in a home series against UC Riverside (3-5, 0-2).
Having been out of action for so long, and with no guarantees that the season will continue uninterrupted, Dixon feels an added significance to every opportunity she has to take the floor, and expects to bring high energy for the rest of the year.
“Be grateful every day you step on the court to practice, be grateful every time you get to play against another team. That’s the one thing this really taught me,” she said. “I should never take the opportunity to be on the floor for granted because at any moment it can go away.”
CSUB and Riverside will tip off at 4 p.m. today and Saturday at the Icardo Center.