Mocs need newcomers to make contributions
Nat Dixon said during the preseason that he has no problems doing whatever it takes to help his team get a win. He’s shown that, too. For a University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s basketball team that expects to start five seniors, the roles of players such as Dixon — a sophomore new to UTC — sophomore guard Peyton Woods and freshman point guard Rodney Chatman will be magnified when the Mocs open the season at 7 p.m. Friday at the University of Tennessee.
Dixon, a former Boston College wide receiver who later played basketball at East Mississippi Community College, filled up the stat line in his first action for UTC, a 76-43 exhibition victory over NCAA Division III member Covenant College last Friday. He finished with five points, seven rebounds (two offensive), three assists and three steals in 17 minutes, having moved to power forward on the fly after the indefinite loss of senior Chuck Ester to a knee injury last week.
It wasn’t just the stats, though. Early in the second half, with the Mocs lagging, Dixon sprinted and dove after a loose ball he had no chance of reaching. The Scots retained possession, but the play sort of ignited the UTC bench.
Dixon doesn’t care about the possibility of injuries, noting that if he gets hurt, athletic trainer Kyle Creasy and strength and conditioning coach Collin Crane “will get me right.”
“I just want to win at the end of the day,” Dixon said. “Whenever I’m in the game, I want to be a spark plug for the rest of the team, so maybe I’ll go take a charge, dive on the floor, get everybody hyped up so it’ll calm the crowd down.”
Mocs coach Matt McCall referred to Dixon as “a guy that affects winning” with his style of play, and he applauded the fact that the 6-foot-5, 183-pounder understands his current role with the team and doesn’t deviate.
He’s not the only new player UTC expects to count on in Knoxville, thanks to some productive weeks in practice. Coaches pushed Chatman during the preseason, and now with his expected playing time set to increase some with the loss of Ester, he’s prepared.
Chatman logged 20 minutes in the exhibition, scoring six points and handing out a team-high four assists. The 6-foot-2 freshman will be asked to play more to give McCall the option to play starting point guard Greg Pryor off the ball more and create some more offense.
“Rodney here early for our team is huge,” McCall said. “His feel in the pickand-roll is terrific. We’ve been harping on him about not being lazy with the ball, but he’s a tough kid that’s going to get baptized here through this weekend and the beginning of the season, but his development is key for this team going forward.”
Woods, one of the team’s best shooters, missed both of his 3-point attempts against Covenant but will be counted on to provide key minutes off the bench as well.
“Their roles are just as important as the five starters on the floor,” Pryor said. “They have to be just as into the game as we are — which I know they will be — but their role is just as important as me, Tre’ (McLean), (Justin) Tuoyo, Casey (Jones), all our roles.
“They’ve got to come ready to play, because they’re going to play minutes and they have to give us something when they get on the floor.”