Michigan basketball players' short suspensions mean Wolverines have plenty to play for
On Feb. 10, shortly after Michigan basketball clobbered third-ranked Purdue in an eye-opening performance, center Hunter Dickinson was asked to reflect on a comment he made long before the season began. Dickinson, who flirted with entering the NBA draft, said part of the reason he returned to U-M for his sophomore year was to contend for championships.
But the Wolverines were just 12-9 overall and 6-5 in the Big Ten before beating the Boilermakers, and simply qualifying for the NCAA tournament seemed a more appropriate goal than contending for any kind of title.
Then coach Juwan Howard’s group opened a 29-point lead over one of the best teams in the country to reinforce the idea that this season still could be salvaged.
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“Obviously the goal is to win a Big Ten championship,” Dickinson said that night. “We’re not in the best position that we could be in right now, but shoot, everything we want is still in front of us. All the teams that are ahead of us, we play. I don’t have a Magic 8-ball in front of me or anything, but we control our own destiny and I think we control what the rest of the season looks like. It’s on us. If we don’t win the Big Ten championship, it’s our fault at this point.”
That narrative veered in an unsightly direction Sunday following Michigan’s 77-63 loss to Wisconsin. Irked by what he believed was an unnecessary timeout from coach Greg Gard in the final seconds, Howard sparked a brawl in the postgame handshake line when he struck UW assistant Joel Krabbenhoft in the face. Additional punches were thrown by Michigan's Moussa Diabate and Terrance Williams II and Wisconsin's Jahcobi Neath as the melee intensified.
But an incident that might have threatened U-M’s flickering postseason hopes is likely to be remembered as more of a dodged bullet given the leniency of punishments for Diabate and Williams, who were tagged with one-game suspensions by the Big Ten. And while Howard was fined $40,000 and suspended for the remainder of the regular season, which amounts to five games, the experience of associate head coach Phil Martelli should be enough to steward the team through the next two weeks before the conference tournament in early March.
In other words, Dickinson’s message still applies: The Wolverine have plenty to play for.
“After taking time to reflect on all that happened,” Howard said in a written statement distributed by Michigan’s athletic department on Monday evening, “I realize how unacceptable both my actions and words were, and how they affected so many. I am truly sorry.
“I am offering my sincerest apology to my players and their families, my staff, my family and the Michigan fans around the world. I would like to personally apologize to Wisconsin's assistant coach Joe Krabbenhoft and his family, too.
“Lastly, I speak a lot about being a Michigan man and representing the University of Michigan with class and pride, I did not do that, nor did I set the right example in the right way for my student-athletes. I will learn from my mistake and this mistake will never happen again. No excuses!”
Martelli, 67, will provide the Wolverines with a calming presence while Howard is suspended. Now in his third season as Howard's top assistant, Martelli spent 24 seasons as the head coach at Saint Joseph’s with an overall record of 444-328 (.575 winning percentage). He took the Hawks to the NCAA tournament seven times and reached the Elite Eight during the 2003-04 season. He was named Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year four times and was recognized as the national coach of the year in 2004.
U-M returns to the court Wednesday at Crisler Center against Rutgers, one of the hottest teams in the league. Coach Steve Pikiell’s group has won five of its last seven games, including a stretch of four consecutive victories over ranked opponents earlier this month: Michigan State (84-63), Ohio State (66-64), Wisconsin (73-65) and Illinois (70-59). The Scarlet Knights have climbed to fifth in the Big Ten standings at 10-6.
Martelli’s initial challenge will be devising a game plan to overcome the absences of Diabate, the team’s starting power forward, and Williams, the leading scorer off the bench. Veteran big man Brandon Johns Jr., who began the season in Howard’s first five, is likely to reclaim his place alongside Dickinson in the front court. Johns is averaging 8.3 minutes per game over the last six and hasn’t scored more than five points in a game since Dec. 7 against Nebraska.
Elevating Johns to the starting lineup while also losing Williams off the bench eliminates half of Michigan’s normal reserves. The only remaining substitutes who receive consistent playing time are freshmen guards Frankie Collins and Kobe Bufkin. It’s possible the scarcely used Jace Howard could be asked to play a larger role against the Scarlet Knights in the same way he stepped forward on the road at Illinois earlier this season.
After Rutgers, the Wolverines will face Illinois, Michigan State and Iowa at home before closing the season on the road at Ohio State.
“I feel like it’s just the next-man-up mentality,” Williams said after beating Nebraska earlier this season. “Coach Howard always talks about staying ready and being that next man up when your name is called.”
With key figures suspended, a few new names might be called Wednesday night.
Contact Michael Cohen at mcohen@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @Michael_Cohen13.