Dixon Earns Player Of The Year Award At Maryland Team Banquet
4/11/2002 8:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
April 11, 2002
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Maryland Terrapins' 2001-02 men's basketball season was made complete on Thursday night as 1,100 guests helped honor the national champions at the Terps' annual postseason banquet. Traditionally held at an on-campus banquet facility, this season's awards night was held on the floor of Cole Field House where Maryland finished undefeated (15-0) this season while playing in the building's 47th and final season as the Terps' home venue.
The Terps clinched their first outright regular season title in the Atlantic Coast Conference since 1980, by beating Virginia in the final game ever to be played at Cole, on March 3. Just 10 days after claiming the NCAA national championship with a 64-52 win over Indiana on April 1, the Terrapins celebrated their 32-4 record and national crown by unfurling its championship banner from the Cole Field House rafters to close the evening.
Baltimore native Juan Dixon, the senior guard who was a consensus All-America pick and the ACC Player of the Year, was honored as Maryland's team MVP. Dixon averaged 20.4 points per game and finished his career as the school's all-time scoring leader. He was the leading scorer in this year's NCAA Tournament with 155 points in six games, and finished as the ninth-leading scorer in NCAA Tournament history. Dixon was also honored as the team's best free throw shooter, finishing the year with an 89.8 percentage at the charity stripe, and the third-best percentage in Atlantic Coast Conference history.
Also honored by Coach Gary Williams, with the team's Lifetime Achievement Award, was former sports information director Jack Zane whose tenure at the university dates to his enrollment as a freshman in 1954. The athletic department's chief information and publicity officer for parts of four decades, Zane has worked in the ticket office for most of the last 10 years and currently is the Executive Director for the Walk of Fame and History at the school's new Comcast Center, which will open in fall 2002.
Other honors from the 2002 Maryland basketball postseason awards banquet:
Charles "Buck" Williams/Len Elmore Rebounding Award
Lonny Baxter
Mr. Hustle Award
Byron Mouton
Outstanding Free Throw Shooter
Juan Dixon
Most Assists
Steve Blake
Sixth-Man Award
Tahj Holden & Drew Nicholas
Most Improved Award
Chris Wilcox
WBAL Academic Award
Byron Mouton
Lifetime Achievement Award
Jack Zane
Player of the Year Award
Juan Dixon
Senior Awards
Nikhil Verma (manager), Stephen Wheeler (manager),
Earl Badu, Lonny Baxter, Juan Dixon, Byron Mouton
