Heart and Soul, Xavier's Dante Jackson
By: Nate Crossman, Columnist (Blue
Ribbon Contributing Editor)
Photo Credit: Xavier University Sports Information
Xavier junior Dante Jackson probably had occasional nightmares
about playing point guard last year. He most likely didn't believe
he'd ever miss the position. But there he was in Musketeers' head
coach Chris Mack's office prior to this season, wondering whether
or not a move to his more natural wing guard position from point
guard was the right one for him.
"At the beginning of the year, I was in the middle about it,"
Jackson said of the move. "I'd played that position (point guard)
for two years (and had become used to it).
"But now I know the move was good for me, because we have two pure
point guards and I'm able to play off the ball."
Whether or not the move was good for Jackson can be debated. As of
last weekend's win over Richmond, he was averaging almost a point
less a game (6.6 versus 5.8), less rebounds and less assists. But
one thing is for certain. It was good for the team.
With Jackson on the wing, sophomore Terrell Holloway has flourished
in the point guard position. He's averaging two assists for every
one turnover, which is better than the one-to-one ratio he turned
in last year. And although he's not scoring as much, Jackson has
improved his three-point shooting - now that he doesn't have
to worry about bringing the ball up - hitting from
deep at a 39-percent clip. That's an important statistic for
the Musketeers, who've made more threes than any other team in the
Atlantic 10 except for Richmond. The veteran is also steady
from the line, connecting on 78% of his charity stripe
attempts.
Jackson having a positive influence on the team is typical,
according to Mack.
"He is the emotional spark plug of this team," Mack said. "His
heart is in the right place.
"He loves this team. He loves this program."
It wasn't all bad for Jackson last year. After ceding the point
guard duties to Holloway in January, he reclaimed the position in
February, and started there the final 11 games. During those 11
games, his scoring averaged jumped almost a point and his
assist-to-turnover-ratio went from 1.5-to-1 to almost 3-to-1. He
averaged 10 points per game in three tournament games, including a
13-point performance in a first-round win over Portland State.
Jackson has a knack for raising his level of play in the
tournament. In addition to his play last year, he knocked down a
crucial three-pointer in a first-round win over a red-hot Georgia
team two years ago. They were his only points of the game.
"The bigger the game, the better he plays," Mack said.
Jackson proved that once again this year in a win over Dayton,
scoring a team-high 19 points, including 11 in the first half. But
those types of games have been sparse. He's only reached double
figures twice, and has been shut out four times, as opposed to
just twice last year.
To be fair, part of Jackson's numbers decline is attributable
to super-talented sophomore Jordan Crawford, who's become the
focal point of the offense, especially on the perimeter.
Jackson's opportunities are fewer. But he's happy to have
Crawford on the team.
"He's really grown as a player," Jackson said of Crawford.
Xavier, too, is much improved since the beginning of the
season, when they were still adjusting to Mack's coaching style,
and new roles. But the fact remains that the Musketeers are a
relatively young team which is going to need maximum performances
from upperclassmen in the tournament if they're going to
advance.
Jackson's stellar play in last year's tournament was a luxury.
This year it will be a necessity.
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