Hunter Dickinson at Michigan in 2020. (Photo: Marc Gregor Campredon / MGo Blog. Creative Commons license CC BY-SA 2.0. No changes were made to the photo. License available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0.).
ALEXANDRIA, VA – Alexandria native and DeMatha 2020 graduate, Hunter Dickinson, showed basketball fans that he had game this season while playing for the University of Michigan, leading his team to an Elite Eight slot in the 2021 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, also colloquially known and branded as NCAA March Madness.
As a freshman, the 7’1” 255-pound center has become a once-in-a-generation player for the Maize and Blue, so much so that Michigan’s head coach and legendary alum, Juwan Howard, has taken Dickinson under his wing. From Howard, he’s learned nuances of the game that his coach acquired while playing as a member of the‘Fab Five.’ Howard’s resume also includes two NBA championships with the Miami Heat during a 19-year career.
The collegiate basketball world took notice of Dickinson’s phenomenal play, where he garnered a trophy case of awards during his first year of playing in the Big Ten Conference.
Michigan Career
- Associated Press All-America, second-team (2021)
- NABC All-America, second-team (2021)
- Sporting News All-America, second-team (2021)
- USA Today All America, second team (2021)
- USBWA All-America, second-team (2021)
- Big Ten Freshman of the Year (Coaches & Media, 2021)
- All-Big Ten, first team (Media) & second team (Coaches) (2021)
- Big Ten All-Freshman Team (Coaches, 2021)
- Big Ten Freshman of the Week (7 times; Dec. 7, 14 & 28, Jan. 4 & 11, Feb. 15, 22)
- Ties U-M record for most honors in a single season (Trey Burke, 7 in 2011-12)
- Associated Press, Big Ten Newcomer of the Year (2021)
- Kyle Macy Freshmen All-America Team (2021)
- Naismith Trophy Midseason Team (2021)
- NABC All-District 7, second team (2021)
- USBWA All-District V Team (2021)
- Semifinalist: Naismith Trophy, National Player of the Year (2021)
- Semifinalist: Wooden Award, National Player of the Year (2021)
- Finalist: USBWA Wayman Tisdale National Freshman Player of the Year (2021)
- Finalist: Kyle Macy Award for National Freshmen of the Year (2021)
- Semifinalist: Basketball Hall of Fame, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award for Top Center (2021)
Individual awards abounding, Dickinson and his fellow Wolverine teammates’ success on the court helped Coach Howard win honors of Big Ten regular-season champion (2021), Sporting News Coach of the Year (2021), Henry Iba Award (2021), and Big Ten Coach of the Year (2021).
With UCLA’s 51-49 close win over Michigan in this year’s Elite Eight expectations are high for Dickinson to lead the Michigan basketball program to even greater heights during the upcoming 2021/2022 season and Alexandrians will be cheering him on all the way.
In Other News: Livestreaming: Statue of NBA’s First Black Player Earl Francis Lloyd Being Unveiled in His Alexandria Home Town April 3
