April 28, 2016
CHICAGO -- Freshman Dikembe Dixson continued to collect postseason hardware Wednesday night (April 27) when he was named the UIC Rookie of the Year at the the annual A Night to Ignite event.
The award, which is voted on by UIC Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) members, is presented to a male or female student-athlete in their first year of competition at UIC who made a significant impact in his/her sport for the current season. The rookie of the year has to have competed in 75 percent of the competitions for their team.
Not only did Dixson compete in 75 percent of UIC's games in 2015-16, he was one of two Flames to start every single one. The Freeport, Ill., native led the squad in several statistical categories including scoring (19.8 ppg), rebounding (7.3 rpg) and minutes played (36.7 mpg). He set UIC single-season records in both free throws (169) and free-throw attempts (256), while leading the Flames with seven double-doubles.
Dixson set the Horizon League record for most points scored by a freshman with 594 points, breaking the previous mark of 501 that was held by former UIC standout Mark Miller. He earned Horizon League Freshman of the Week honors a record-setting eight times, including five times during conference play. The forward was the unanimous choice as the Horizon League Freshman of the Year and he earned All-Horizon League second team honors, as well.
The men's basketball program picked up a second award Wednesday night, the Best Comeback. That award was presented to the individual or team with the best comeback in the 2015-2016 school year. This team started the competition off slowly but then found the fire and pulled out a victory that was talked about for weeks and utterly unforgettable. The Flames claimed the honor after rallying back from a 12-point deficit to top Cleveland State in overtime on January 30 for their first Horizon League victory of the season.
UIC is set to return six letterwinners, including four starters, for the 2016-17 campaign. Head coach Steve McClain and his coaching staff have also inked six talented newcomers to National Letters of Intent to join the program.
