Jessica Dickson

[The_Reaper]

#1 in the country for ppg. Way to go Jessica!!!

[gurlybull]

source??

[The_Reaper]

Today's St. Pete Times Sports page!  ;D   Nice article

[sdgukhsdgl]

you cant link to NCAA stats page, but here is the top 10 PPG.... someone else can figure out the table

1Jessica Dickson, South Fla.Jr  23.9

2Sophia Young, BaylorSr.  22.2

3Emily Christian, Tennessee TechSr  21.8

4Kari Koch, Missouri St.Sr.  21.6

5B.J. Banjo, East Tenn. St.Sr  21.5

6Courtney Paris, OklahomaFr.  21.4

7Cappie Pondexter, RutgersSr.  21.1

8Rasaan Powell, Alcorn St.Jr  21.0

9Tamara James, Miami (Fla.)Sr.  20.9

10Tara Boothe, XavierSr.6-1F  20.7

[Triple B]

'Can't do it' no obstacle to Dickson

The USF star and nation's top scorer works relentlessly to fix holes in her game.

By GREG AUMAN, Times Staff Writer

Published January 11, 2006

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TAMPA - Early in her career at Ocala's Vanguard High, Jessica Dickson set two goals: to break her coach's school scoring record, and to dunk.

Dickson would obliterate Annette Powell's record, scoring 2,634, but her coach still laughs recalling how the 6-foot forward couldn't give up her other ambition.

"I told her she'd never be able to dunk, but she just thinks her vertical jump is enough to do it," Powell said. "One game, the game is well in hand, and she and our little point guard had plotted it. She lobs the ball to Jessica and she tries to go up and dunk it, but the ball went over her head and she just went flying. I benched them both the rest of the night."

Years later, the best way to motivate Dickson is still to tell her she can't do something. The USF junior is leading the nation with 23.9 points per game, and as the Bulls host No. 10 Rutgers in a key Big East game tonight, Dickson is still driven to prove her doubters wrong.

"Every year, she had to add something to her bag," Powell said. "It's been, what, seven years since she started playing here, and she still hasn't reached her potential. Every game with Jessica, I expected something different to happen."

The latest motivation came before this season, in a voice mail forwarded to coach Jose Fernandez, who knew Dickson's competitive nature well enough that he called her cell phone right away to play it for her.

USF had made calls to national basketball writers, lobbying for Dickson to be considered for preseason All-America teams. One writer called USF's sports information department, leaving a harsh message that explained why Dickson just wasn't All-America material: Her shooting percentage wasn't high enough and she was committing far too many turnovers.

"That definitely motivated me," Dickson said. "When he did that, it was the best thing he could have done. I was in (the gym) constantly, just shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot, basically until my arms got tired, thinking about what he said."

As a sophomore, Dickson shot 39.8 percent, not a glaringly bad number for a perimeter player who had been the focus of opposing defenses since she was college basketball's highest-scoring freshman in 2003-04. This season, that figure is up to 47.8 percent, and her improved scoring is a big reason for USF's 11-4 start as the Bulls pursue their first NCAA Tournament appearance.

When the Bulls opened Big East play last month with an overtime upset of then-No. 11 DePaul, Dickson scored 35 and drew high praise from Blue Demons coach Doug Bruno, who compared her to Rutgers' All-American guard, Cappie Pondexter.

"If Cappie is the best guard in this league, then Dickson is 1A," he said. "This is a great league for guards, and Jessica belongs in the elite of our elite."

Dickson credits her progress to working overtime on her shooting, nothing new for her. After high school games, she'd stop at the local park on the way home and shoot, alternating free throws and jump shots, until she'd made 150.

Point out a hole in her game, she won't be satisfied until she has made considerable improvement. Powell remembers calling out her star player during a game for not being a better free-throw shooter. She told Dickson that opponents were fouling her on purpose, knowing she was a 50 percent shooter from the line, and that she was working harder for points than she really had to.

"That's all it took," Powell said. "The rest of the season, she shot 85 percent."

She has hit 85.3 percent this season, third best in the Big East. The latest addition to her repertoire is a 3-point shot, having shifted from a power forward in high school to a small forward at USF and knowing her future in the WNBA is likely as a shooting guard.

"In high school, I couldn't shoot a 3 to save my life," said Dickson, who made just eight as a college freshman, hitting 21 percent.

She made 36 as a sophomore, improving to 31 percent, and she already has 36 this season, hitting 3s at a 41 percent clip. The national scoring leaders are largely post players, and only one of the NCAA's top 25 scorers has hit more 3s than Dickson.

For all her success, Dickson is still a humble, soft-spoken 21-year-old, and even when she mentions the confident homecourt mantra, "We must protect this house," it's spoken with a disarming politeness. The quiet voice and the friendly demeanor are genuine, but this is also a video-game junkie who lists Grand Theft Auto among her favorites.

The common link is her competitive spirit, which is why the nation's leading scorer was putting in extra time in the video room this week, trying to limit her turnovers.

"That's why she's good. That's why she's going to leave here as the all-time leading scorer in school history, possibly men or women," Fernandez said.

Dickson will likely move into sixth on USF's career scoring list tonight, and the five ahead of her all played before 1993, in the Bulls' Sun Belt Conference days. She has ushered in a new, more challenging era of Bulls basketball with a quiet confidence, and tonight, Rutgers will be USF's fifth opponent ranked in the top 15.

"They're a good team and we're a good team. It's nothing for us to be in awe of," Dickson said. "We can match up with anybody well. We just have to realize our potential as a team."

She has already mapped out next summer's goals, starting with improved ballhandling and polishing her drive to the basket.

Of course, there's still that dunk to work on.

http://www.sptimes.com/2006/01/11/Sports/_Can_t_do_it__no_obst.shtml

[dausfbulls11]

Added 37 points in game tonight....best lady bull ever!!

[ChiTownBull]

she could probably help the mens team this season

[Bishop of Bulltown]

like a reverse Ladybugs deal

[BiggTipp]

WNBA here i come

[bulls96go]

come on coach mac let her play!