Playing Career
Dakich attended Andrean Catholic High School in Merrillville, Indiana. He elected to play basketball for Indiana under coach Bob Knight from 1982 to 1985. He was a team captain during his junior and senior seasons and the Hoosiers finished with an 84-39 record during his career. As a player, he helped Indiana win one Big Ten title (during the 1982-83 season), earn three NCAA Tournament berths and finish as the NIT runner-up his senior season. As a junior, he was named All-Tournament at the Indiana Classic and as a senior he earned similar accolades at the Hoosier Classic.
Dakich is best remembered for his defensive effort against Michael Jordan in Indiana's upset of No. 1 ranked North Carolina in the 1984 East Regional Semifinal of the NCAA Tournament. It was only Dakich's sixth start of the year, but coach Knight assigned him to guard Jordan the afternoon of the game. Knight told him, "Just don't let him dunk on you. That will embarrass you and me both." Dakich later reported, "I went back to my room and threw up." He held Jordan to just 13 points and caused him to foul out. Indiana ultimately won the game 72-68.
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Famous quotes containing the words playing and/or career:
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