Dixon drives Abington past Norristown, back to District 1-6A semifinals
ABINGTON >> All season, teams have tried to go zone against Abington as a way to try and keep the ball out of Eric Dixon’s hands.
At times, it works because the Ghosts can tend to start settling for the first quick, open shot they see. Usually, with a little prodding from the coaches, the Ghosts start going back to the big man and he starts to deliver. Such was the case Friday, as Dixon went quiet in the second quarter but blew up coming out of halftime.
The junior scored 23 points as the Ghosts battled past a game Norristown team 57-43 in the District 1-6A boys basketball quarterfinals.
“Just throw it to him,” Ghosts coach Charles Grasty said of how his team got Dixon more involved. “We wanted to play inside-out. Dixon is a special player, we love having him on the court. We’re blessed to have him here at Abington, he’s an Abington kid, he loves Abington, the community loves him and he loves the community.”
The Eagles (17-8) hadn’t seen anyone quite like Dixon all season but his presence didn’t stop Norristown from doing what it’s done all season. Norristown, the No. 7 seed, played tough all night, took care of the ball for the most part and the players were genuinely dejected heading toward the bus home.
To first-year coach Dana “Binky” Johnson, that was a good thing. It showed the game meant something to his kids and proved their competitive spirit. Johnson called the loss a “growing pains” night and felt Abington’s experience in big games was part of the difference in the second half.
“From experience, they knew how to come out in the third quarter,” Johnson said. “I think their experience showed in the third and our lack of experience showed in a couple of errors and that’s a compliment to them. Abington, you know what you’re getting with them.”
Dixon started the game on the bench in what Grasty called a team decision meant as a teaching moment. When the 6-foot-7 junior came in midway through the first quarter, he wasted little time making a mark on the game.
BOYS BASKETBALL: @AbingtonSenior @ForeignRobbie rebounds and outlets to a @BigEballer_ dunk for a 32-26 lead Q3 against Norristown. pic.twitter.com/iQQWC5GifK
— Andrew Robinson (@ADRobinson3) February 24, 2018
His first shot was an and-1 that sent the packed Abington student section into a frenzy and by the time the first period ended, he had six points and Abington was up 16-8. When Norristown dropped back into a zone during the second quarter, Dixon saw his touches diminish and he had just two points in the frame as Norristown out-scored the No. 2 Ghosts (20-5) and got within 28-24 at the break.
“I was fired up, this is the game you have to win to go to Temple, everybody wants to get down there,” Dixon said. “It’s a pride thing on your home floor, you want to get your friends and your family down to Temple and give them something to go down there for.”
Norristown got good minutes from its bench in the second, with Mike Dorman hitting two 3-pointers and Tyler Tate chipping in two points, three rebounds and two assists. Tyler Lyons had nine points at the half, five in the second quarter to go with his usual relentless defense.
After Lyons fed Darius Hopewell for a score to start the third quarter, Dixon went on a tear to restore momentum Abington’s way. He scored off a feed from Monroe, then after Robbie Heath rebounded a miss, the senior flung an outlet pass down to Dixon, who threw down a one-handed dunk in front of the Abington students before capping the run with a steal and layup.
“It was just me playing a little bit harder,” Dixon said. “I had to wake up and play a little harder. The game was close so I felt like I had to step up a little bit.”
The Ghosts held Norristown to just six points in the third frame and took a 40-30 edge into the final eight minutes. Dixon canned a deep 3-pointer early in the period as the Ghosts looked like they could be putting together a finisher of a run.
Instead, Norristown’s Vernon Tubbs decided his team wasn’t done yet. The guard bagged all 13 of his points and all 13 of Norristown’s points, in the fourth quarter, catching fire and burying a trio of 3-point shots, the last getting the Eagles within 50-41.
“I look at a few turnovers we had at the end, I had one where I tried to do a hesitation and lost the ball, it’s stuff we have to clean up in practice,” Tubbs said. “We’re going to practice tomorrow and get right back at it. We just keep our heads up and don’t dwell on a loss.”
The Eagles travel to No. 6 Pennridge on Tuesday for a seeding game and Johnson said it’s a way for his team to not only try and build positive momentum going into states, but also continue to get battle-tested.
“This is really going to help us out, these are the types of games I want where our guys are in the trenches and playing against a team that’s top-two in the district and Top 10 in the state,” Johnson said. “That’s one thing about Norristown basketball, we don’t change what we do as far as playing hard, playing smart and playing together. We’re doing that for 32 minutes and it showed tonight.”
BOYS BASKETBALL: @town_hoop @___1geez buries a Q4 three against Abington. Vernon Tubbs had all 13 of his points in the final quarter against the Ghosts pic.twitter.com/SnBVvfaAI7
— Andrew Robinson (@ADRobinson3) February 24, 2018
Dixon also had nine rebounds and didn’t just get it done on the offensive end, as he did a solid job of guarding Norristown’s Mikeel Allen. Grasty said the Ghosts had noticed Norristown liked to put the dynamic junior on the low block in the halfcourt and gave the assignment to Dixon.
The defensive end has been a work in progress for the big man, but something he’s tried to put the effort into getting better at.
“Foot speed, I’m trying to get more laterally quick and get in better position,” Dixon said. “(Allen) is a great player, good driver and tough. I just wanted to beat him to a spot and make him take a tough shot.”
Abington faces No. 3 Lower Merion on Tuesday at Temple in the district semifinals. It’s the team’s third trip to the Liacouras Center in the last four years, but not something anyone in the program is overlooking.
“It doesn’t get old,” Dixon said. “Even though I’ve been down there before, I’m still looking forward to it and especially for all my seniors who were on JV last year, them getting a chance to go down to Temple and play on that court, it’s a big deal.”
ABINGTON 57, NORRISTOWN 43
ABINGTON 16 12 12 17 – 57
NORRISTOWN 8 16 6 13 – 43
A: Eric Dixon 9 4-5 23, Robbie Heath 3 2-4 8, Brandon Coffman 3 0-0 6, Lucas Monroe 4 4-6 12, Xavier Crawford 1 0-0 2, Dante Knox 1 0-0 3, JP Nolan 1 0-0 3. Totals: 22 10-15 57
N: Vernon Tubbs 3 4-6 13, Marcus Sanford 3 0-0 6, Tyler Lyons 4 0-0 9, Darius Hopewell 1 1-2 3, Mikeel Allen 2 0-1 4, Mike Dorman 2 0-0 6, Tyler Tate 1 0-0 2. Totals: 16 5-9 43
3-pointers: A – Dixon, Nolan, Knox; N – Tubbs 3, Dorman 2, Lyons
