Know Your KU History: Tamecka Dixon

Tamecka Dixon is one of only three women’s basketball players to have her number hung in the rafters at Allen Fieldhouse. That’s how good she was.

The Linden, New Jersey native came to Kansas in the fall of 1993 and immediately got started on an impressive Kansas career. As a freshman, she only started six games, but averaged 17 minutes per game off the bench. That year, she averaged 6.8 points per game and helped KU to a second round NCAA tournament appearance. The 22-6 Jayhawks were a nine seed and lost to the top-seeded Penn State Nittany Lions in the second game.

As a sophomore, Dixon increased her offensive output. The 5’9" guard averaged 11.6 points per game while holding steady at just a shade over four rebounds per contest, but her junior campaign was the year where she really started to get noticed. During the 1995-96 season, Tamecka averaged 17 points, four rebounds, and three assists per game. KU went to the Sweet 16 that year, losing to powerhouse and eventual national champion Tennessee. KU won the Big 8 that season and Dixon was the engine that ran that team.

But Tamecka’s senior season is the one where she generated all the press. She averaged 20.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, and three assists per game and led her team to a 25-6 overall record, and a 14-2 record in conference. Kansas won the first ever Big 12 championship in women’s basketball. KU also went to the NCAA tournament as a three seed but was upset in the second round by Vanderbilt.

For her stellar campaign, Dixon was named to the first team All-Big 12 and was named the conference MVP. She was later named to the Kodak All-American team, thus cementing her as one of the all-time greats in the program’s history.

Dixon’s graduation in the spring of 1997 coincided with the inaugural season of the WNBA. Dixon was taken with the 14^th overall pick by the Los Angeles Sparks. Over 13 seasons in the WNBA, Dixon averaged 9.7 points per contest and just under three in both the assist and rebound categories. She had seven seasons in which she averaged double digits in scoring with her best season coming in year number two. In that 1998 campaign, Dixon averaged 16.2 points per game for Los Angeles.

But, the apex of her career came at the beginning of the new century. In 2001 and 2002, Dixon helped the Sparks to back-to-back WNBA championships. She averaged 12.9 points per game in those playoff and championship runs. She was also named to the WNBA All-Star team in each of those seasons. She added a third All-Star appearance to her list of achievements the following season.

Her professional career ended in 2009, but she has started an athlete training program which stresses high athletic performance with an emphasis in basketball.