What might have been?

Pitt senior Jermaine Dixon thinks about it a lot. What would Pitt's record be if he had not fractured a bone in his right foot twice over the offseason and missed the first eight games this season? What statistics might he had registered if he been completely healthy?

Those questions never will be answered, but Dixon's worth to the team can be by coach Jamie Dixon. The coach said Dixon's perseverance through his injuries and his leadership are big factors in Pitt finishing the season among the top four teams in the Big East and reaching a ninth consecutive NCAA tournament.

"If you had to draw up a senior year, it hasn't been what you would want," Jamie Dixon said. "His leadership has come in the way he has handled it. His attitude, behavior, unselfishness through this whole thing with the injuries. Being out six months is an unbelievable amount of time to be out.

"You talk about how kids handle adversity showing true signs of character, Jermaine is a great testament to that. His leadership showed through the injuries he had, and how he handled things. He never complained. He never thought about himself. It was always about the team. That's why I speak so glowingly of him. That's why I'm so thankful for him. In some ways, he has become more of a leader than I ever could have anticipated."

Dixon, a two-year starter at shooting guard, is not the same player he was before twice fracturing the fifth metatarsal bone in his foot. He was robbed of his explosiveness and quickness.

The first injury occurred in early July after playing in a summer league game. After rehabilitating the injury with rest, he reinjured the same bone in a freak accident when a teammate fell on the foot during a pickup game on campus in mid-September.

After the second fracture, team doctors surgically repaired the bone. That kept Dixon out of the lineup until the second week of December. Pitt lost to then-No. 2 Texas in November with Dixon watching in street clothes and lost again to Indiana in his first game back.

"It was tough at first, sitting out," Jermaine Dixon said. "I tried not to complain. I had never been injured before in my life. So, it was something I wasn't used to. It was tough getting back in a rhythm and doing the things I can do. I still don't feel like I do things as well as I did last year, things like getting in passing lanes, getting easy steals and baskets for my team. I still feel like I'm a step slow."

The partial loss of his physical gifts has not affected his ability to be a leader, and his teammates identify him as their emotional leader. Jamie Dixon has said "this is Jermaine's team."

"I learned a lot from him as far as his leadership skills on and off the court," sophomore guard Ashton Gibbs said. "He's been like a real role model to me. It's something I really cherished and it's something I'll continue to take with me."

Jermaine Dixon will play the final home game of his career at Pitt this afternoon when the Panthers play host to Rutgers in the regular-season finale at the Petersen Events Center. After struggling with discomfort in his foot and other injuries throughout the course of the season, Dixon is playing his best basketball as the postseason approaches.

He has scored in double figures in 8 of the past 10 games and had the best offensive game of his career Thursday night in Pitt's 73-71 victory against Providence. Dixon set careers highs with 24 points and 12 rebounds to help lead the Panthers past the Friars.

"I think Jermaine, he's just starting to get more comfortable driving, slashing to the basket and finishing," Jamie Dixon said. "I think you saw more of that [Thursday night] than you've probably seen all year of him finishing around the basket. He's just getting more comfortable with the foot after being out all this time."

Dixon, who came to Pitt last year from Tallahassee Community College, has 530 career points and 120 assists. But he is not the type of player who can be measured by statistics. He is a candidate for Big East defensive player of the year as well as the Big East sportsmanship award.

When asked how he wanted to be remembered, Dixon said: "Just as someone who played hard, did the little stuff, things that players don't like to do that helps teams win. Those are the things I like to do.

"It's not always about scoring or hitting the big shots. There are other things you can do to help your team win and make everyone better. That's what I tried to do. And I think I did it pretty well."

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