Former high school teammates reunited at Western

By Jacob Meikel

Two former teammates from Tennessee went their separate ways after high school, playing basketball at different universities and different levels. But when an opportunity to share the court arose years later, the duo found themselves both donning black and gold.

Tennessee natives Reese Glover and Julius Dixon didn’t attend the same high school, but they were teammates as part of their Amateur Athletic Union team, the EAB Tigers, which comprised some of the best basketball talent in the state.

“It was great just having good chemistry on the team, a lot of laughs, a lot of fun and it was good basketball, too,” Dixon said.

Coming out of high school, Glover and Dixon were two different prospects. As a sharpshooter, Glover was recruited by Sundance Wicks’ staff at Missouri Western State University. Glover committed to the Griffons out of Franklin High School to continue his basketball career.

Dixon was a slightly more sought-after prospect. His 6-foot-7-inch frame and length made him a suitable prospect for the Division I ranks, and that’s where Dixon looked. He committed to Morehead State University in Kentucky.

But after two seasons at Morehead averaging 9.1 minutes played per game, Dixon decided to enter the transfer portal. When word got out that his services were up for grabs for another program, his former AAU teammate Glover entered the discussions and presented himself as a familiar voice for Dixon as he was going through the process of where to go next.

“We knew he was wanting to transfer out, so when he hit the portal, coach Will (Martin) told me that we wanted him, so I just hit him up,” Glover said.

Though it was far from Tennessee, Dixon found Missouri Western to be a place he was familiar with. He said Western was near the top of the list of schools he was interested in.

“Mo West was a place I wanted to come to just because of coach Will (Martin) and then the connections I already had here: Reese, Zion (Swader), Matthew (Schneider) and all my friends back in Tennessee. So they made my choice easier,” Dixon said.

Dixon came to St. Joseph and showed immediate impact in his first season as a Griff. Inserted into the starting lineup from day one, Dixon averaged 14.2 points per game during his first season at Western. In his redshirt junior year this past season, his scoring dipped, but Dixon still averaged double digits during the season.

“He’s obviously a lot better, more mature in his game,” Glover said. “He has all the intangibles, he had those in high school — length, athleticism, all that. He’s gotten a lot, lot better because he’s put in the work.”

Moving to a place farther from home can be an adjustment for athletes, but Dixon’s teammates and coaches worked to make sure he felt welcome in St. Joseph.

“I feel like everybody’s made my stay here very comfortable. My teammates do a good job of keeping uplifted and in a good spirit mentally,” Dixon said.

Glover has now graduated and moved on from the Western program. He leaves as the program’s all-time three-point shooter, a record he broke during his second-to-last season. As for Dixon, he still has at least one more season.

“If you can play, play as long as you can, in my opinion,” Glover said.