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Dickerson excited to sign with Iowa
Apr. 15, 2014 4:57 pm, Updated: Apr. 16, 2014 12:21 am
IOWA CITY - Trey Dickerson became an Iowa fan focus almost as early as he became a potential target for the coaching staff.
Dickerson, a point guard at Williston (N.D.) Junior College, is active on Twitter and started following the Hawkeyes closely during the regular season. He commented on their games, and in turn, he interacted with Hawkeye fans. It seemed an obvious fit, and on March 8, it became a commitment.
The Hawkeyes and Dickerson will make their union official Wednesday when he signs his letter of intent to play at Iowa this fall. Dickerson, who stands 6 feet, will be a sophomore and is eligible to play three seasons in Iowa City.
His relationship with the fans is good, but that was just one component for Dickerson to pick Iowa. He liked what Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery was building at Iowa and he valued what assistant coach Andrew Francis told him throughout the process.
'I just had a real good relationship with the coaches. I trusted everything that Coach Francis and Coach McCaffery were telling me. When I went on my official visit, I got a great relationship with all the players, we bonded real well. I just felt it was the place for me.
'The main thing with Coach Francis was, he was telling me different stuff than the other coaches. Usually they say the same thing. And he's honest - whether it was negative or positive - he was an honest person. And I knew I wanted to be around that type of person.”
Dickerson was named a third-team Division I All-American by NJCAA last week. He averaged 19.7 points, 5.6 assists, and 3.6 rebounds per game in his only season. Dickerson was named Mon-Dak Conference MVP.
At Iowa, he'll compete for playing time at point guard. He'll often move to point guard when the Hawkeyes slide two-year starter Mike Gesell off the ball. Dickerson's charge is to create for his teammates as well as himself.
'Next year they're looking to play Gesell off the ball a lot, too, because he can play off the ball a lot,” Dickerson said. 'Then they can bring me to help him score and help each other out and create for others. I can create for myself, too.
'The biggest thing, I see, is the quickness to break guys down. To be a killer on the collegiate level, you've got to be able to create your own shot, create for others and breaking guys down off the dribble is one of the biggest parts of playing.”
Dickerson is a well-traveled athlete. He grew up in Queens, N.Y., before playing one year of prep school at God's Academy in Dallas, Texas. He signed with Murray State and attended summer classes but quickly realized it wasn't the right fit and opted to leave early last September.
'When I went to Murray State, I felt that I forced that decision,” he said. 'I didn't go through the process to find the best situation for me. But I decided to leave to leave Murray State, there were still just a few junior colleges that would let me enroll and Coach (Eric) Peterson, we just spoke a few times, and I turned to him and I came here to Williston.”
Dickerson will arrive in June and start taking summer classes. He will wear No. 11 for Iowa.
Looking forward
Iowa still has two scholarships available for the upcoming season. The Hawkeyes remain in the mix for muscular power forward Willie Atwood, a 6-foot-8, 215-pound sophomore, who played at Connors State (Okla.) College this year. Atwood, like Dickerson, was named a third-team NJCAA All-American this year.
Dickerson is close friends with Atwood, who previously visited Iowa and Florida State and plans to visit Arizona State this weekend.
'Willie is like my brother. We talk every day,” Dickerson said. 'He just told me he liked Iowa a lot. He likes Florida State and he'll go to Arizona State and go from there. I will support any decision he makes, but I hope it's at Iowa.”
Atwood averaged 15.6 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.1 assists a game over his two seasons at Connors State. He had 11 double-doubles as a sophomore and scored 41 points in a game against Independence Community College. He shot 57.6 percent from the floor and 27.3 percent from 3-point range and 77.4 percent from the free-throw line.
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