By Marc Raimondi
“Take a look around, you may never see this place again,'” Kirby told her. “She said, 'Never say never.'”The younger daughter of the family from Springfield Gardens was right. Two years later and in an entirely different uniform, sophomore CeCe Dixon helped lead Murry Bergtraum to its second straight state Federation 'AA' championship. The Blazers beat St. John the Baptist, 61-47, in the title game Sunday afternoon. She didn't drop 36 points like Lorin did in 2006 against Bergtraum, but CeCe had six in the final and a team-high 12 points in a semifinal win against upstate Rush-Henrietta Saturday. She was named to the all-tournament team.”I was very excited and scared at the same time,” Dixon said. “I felt that I should be watching instead of playing.”But she proved early on that she belonged out there on the hardwood. That scared feeling went away as soon as she made her first basket against Rush-Henrietta, a huge three-point play in the second quarter. Dixon scored eight points in the third quarter as Bergtraum, which won its 10th straight PSAL championship two weeks ago, extended its lead to 48-29.”She really gave us a spark coming off the bench,” Bergtraum coach Ed Grezinsky said. “We were lethargic and we needed a spark.”Dixon started her high-school career last year at Christ the King, but the tuition became too much for the family to handle and, frankly, CeCe was getting sick of the constant comparisons to her elder sibling, who is now a freshman at the University of Connecticut. Bergtraum being the best basketball program in the city – combined with a free education – was a logical choice.”It was a financial burden on my parents and everyone compared me to my sister,” Dixon said. “They said I'm like a little Lorin.”With that legacy came big expectations. Lorin Dixon was one of the best in a long line of great Christ the King point guards. Last year she won New York's Miss Basketball award given to the best senior in the state. Now she's on the top-ranked team in the country and has a chance to win a national championship.”We tell her all the time, 'Just be yourself, you have your own identity,'” Grezinsky said. “It's like Peyton Manning and Eli.”Just like Eli, CeCe has won her first championship. Dixon needs one more to match her sister, though.Reach Associate Sports Editor Marc Raimondi by e-mail at mraimondi@timesledger.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 130.
