SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State men’s basketball head coach Dana Ford announced Tuesday (Aug. 7) that Middle Tennessee guard Tyrik Dixon has transferred to MSU.
Dixon, a 6-foot-1, 184-pound point guard from Bentonville, Ark., will have to sit out the 2018-19 season in residence, per NCAA transfer rules, and will have two seasons of eligibility for the Bears.
“We are extremely excited about the addition of Tyrik to our program,” said MSU assistant coach Jake Headrick who is working with Dixon on his transition to Springfield. “He is a battle-tested player and proven winner who was a two-year starter on a team that won multiple conference championships and competed in the NCAA Tournament.”
Dixon has been Middle Tennessee’s starting point guard each of the last two seasons in Murfreesboro, averaging 5.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game with 59 starts in 68 appearances. The Blue Raiders were 56-13 in that span, including a 31-5 season in 2016-17 that culminated with a Conference USA title and win over Minnesota in the NCAA Tournament. Last season, MTSU finished with a 25-8 ledger and NIT appearance.
As a sophomore, Dixon topped 100 assists for the second time and earned a spot on the Conference USA All-Defensive Team. His 2.38 assist-to-turnover ratio ranked among the top 60 nationally. He also dished out a career-high nine assists in his team’s win over Ole Miss on Dec. 9, 2017, while scoring a season-high 12 points against CUSA rival Southern Miss on Feb. 15, 2018.
During his freshman season in 2016-17, Dixon was named to the CUSA All-Freshman Team and shot nearly 40 percent from 3-point range. He finished with a 2.59 assist-to-turnover ratio – good enough to rank 24th nationally and second in CUSA. He scored 17 points in a home win over Western Kentucky on Jan. 14, 2017 with five 3-pointers just before tallying a career-high 21 points against Southern Miss on Jan. 26, 2017 behind a 9-for-12 shooting effort.
Dixon fills the vacated scholarship from the departure of Darnell Butler earlier this summer.
Dixon is one of three new Bears who will be sitting out during the upcoming season, joining fellow Division I transfers Tulio Da Silva (F, 6-8, 210, Jr., Formiga, Brazil, Arlington (Texas) Country Day School) from South Florida and Josh Hall (G/F, 6-7, 195, Jr., Houston Texas, Genesis Academy) from Nevada.
Ford’s inaugural roster includes five additional newcomers — Keandre Cook (G, 6-5, 190, Jr., Baltimore, Md., Edmondson-Westside High, Odessa (Texas) College); Kabir Mohammed (F, 6-5, 225, Jr., Lagos, Nigeria, Fort Washington (Md.) National Christian Academy, San Jacinto (Texas) College); Josh Webster (G, 6-4, 175, Sr., St. Louis, Mo., CBC High School, South Plains (Texas) College, Texas Tech Univ.); Jan Wojcik (F, 6-10, 210, Fr., Pelczyce, Poland, International High School); Szymon Wojcik (F, 6-10, 210, Fr., Pelczyce, Poland, International High School). The Bears also return three lettermen (Obediah Church, Jarred Dixon, Ryan Kreklow) and four other squad members (Abdul Fofana, Ross Owens, Jarred Ridder, Darrian Scott).
