The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Tuesday, November 19, 2019 — 7
Juwan Howard has already
been the Michigan basketball
coach for nearly six months,
and you’d still be hard-pressed
to find a day that’s gone by
without
him
mentioning
confidence.
A
19-year
NBA
veteran
himself, Howard understands
the value of confidence better
than most. Though he’s a first-
time head coach, he saw it
first-hand during his six-year
stint as an assistant with the
Miami Heat.
Now, he’s applying it in Ann
Arbor.
Sophomore
guard
David
DeJulius is the perfect case
study. As a high school senior,
the Detroit native averaged
26.3 points, 8.1 assists and 7.7
rebounds en route to a third-
place
finish
in
Michigan’s
Mr. Basketball voting. Fast
forward to the next year, when
he played a grand total of just
five minutes in the Wolverines’
eight January games and didn’t
score a point.
“Last year, you might get a
few minutes at a time, so you’re
trying to make sure that you
make a basket or something,”
DeJulius said. “(It) was really,
really rough for me because
I really spent a lot of time
devoting my life to basketball,
so it was really tough not
playing.”
That’s no longer the case,
and DeJulius has Howard to
thank.
DeJulius
has
posted
a
combined 19 points and 15
rebounds
on
60-percent
shooting across the last two
games. He hasn’t hesitated
to let it fly from beyond the
arc, with seven of his 10 shots
during that span coming from
deep. Despite barely scraping
the six-foot mark, DeJulius
ranks second on the team in
rebounds, trailing only 7-foot-1
center Jon Teske.
So far this season, DeJulius
has
been
visibly
more
comfortable with the ball in his
hands, especially in transition.
Though a three-game stretch is
a small sample size, he’s played
at least 30 more minutes than
any other reserve.
“This is like giving CPR to
my basketball career,” DeJulius
said.
Under Howard, DeJulius’
fellow
sophomores
are
undergoing
a
similar
renaissance. Forwards Brandon
Johns Jr. and Colin Castleton
have provided a combined 82
frontcourt minutes off the
bench, while sophomore guard
Adrien Nunez, who saw more
than five minutes of action in
only one game last season, has
started each of Michigan’s first
three contests.
“I feel confident out there on
the offensive floor,” Castleton
said. “(Howard) is just saying
the
same
things
everyday,
preaching the same things into
our ears everyday so we hear
it every single day whether it’s
film, walkthroughs, practice or
even (when he) sees us outside
of practice, just implementing
that into our heads so we can
hear positive things, positive
thoughts no matter what it is
on the court. (He’s) telling us
that he trusts us, and having a
coach that trusts you gives you
a lot of confidence.
For a Michigan program
that
could’ve
easily
spent
the first month of the season
reeling from the departures
of former coach John Beilein
and last year’s three leading
scorers, the emergence of the
sophomore class has provided
a much-needed spine. Even
with prized freshman wing
Franz Wagner on the shelf due
to a wrist fracture, the early-
season
confidence
appears
contagious.
With
the
Wolverines
nearing a stretch of games
against ranked opponents, they
might just score a few resumé-
building wins if the confidence
Howard has instilled continues
giving way to on-court results.
Half of Michigan’s backcourt
for the season has never been in
doubt.
Zavier Simpson, senior point
guard and leader of the Michigan
men’s basketball team, has had
his starting spot locked up since
before Juwan Howard came on as
head coach.
The
other
guard,
though,
has been a question mark since
an injury to freshman forward
Franz Wagner has forced Eli
Brooks into starting at the
‘3.’ For the beginning of the
season, Howard has turned to
sophomore guard Adrien Nunez
to complete his starting five.
But as Nunez has struggled on
both ends of the court, Howard
has
relied
increasingly
on
another sophomore guard: David
DeJulius.
Usually the first off the bench,
DeJulius has embraced his sixth-
man role on this team.
“That’s kind of my identity,”
DeJulius said. “Before the season,
we had our meeting to make sure
I can affect the game, and make
sure that I’m improving and
getting to another level, so that’s
my job. That’s my main focus.
“I just try to be aggressive —
take what the defense gives me,
and at the same time, defend. I
don’t get any plays ran for me,
really, but I just continue to stay
aggressive. I just play my role and
do whatever I can to stay out there
on the floor.”
But he may not be the sixth
man for long.
Despite having started in all
three of the Wolverines’ games
this season, Nunez has only
played 41 minutes
—the other four
starters average
98.5. As it stands
now,
DeJulius
ranks
fifth
on
the
team
in
minutes played,
with 81 on the
season, followed
sophomore
forward Brandon
Johns
Jr.,
and
then Nunez.
In
crunch
time
during
the
season
opener
against
Appalachian State, when the
Mountaineers
whittled
the
Wolverines’ 30-point lead to a
slim four-point margin, DeJulius
— not Nunez – was Michigan’s
second guard.
Howard,
it
seems,
trusts
DeJulius, and is leaning on him
more and more.
“He’s super confident, and
that’s great – he’s a competitor,”
Howard said after Michigan’s
20-point defeat over Elon on
Friday. “David wants it. He puts in
a lot of work – comes in at practice,
comes in on off days. Now he’s
just getting up shots, but he’s also
getting into the film, learning the
game, and that’s some of the best
teaching right there, so overall,
I’m so happy for him.”
DeJulius has not let his coach
down. He’s shooting 46.2 percent
from the field, and an impressive
37.5 percent on his three-point
attempts.
In statistic after statistic, he
leads the bench. His rebounding
— a favorite point of Howard’s —
has looked better and better over
each game, notching 17 on the
season so far, second-highest on
the team behind only Teske.
“We talk about rebounding a
lot, but that’s just something that
I do, because every game, I don’t
hit shots – that’s just kind of how
it is – but at the end of the game, I
want to know that I affected the
game defensively, and rebounded
the ball,” DeJulius said. “You
can’t be mad at
yourself if you
know you gave it
your all at the end
of the game.”
Nunez,
though,
has
been less than
stellar, shooting
41.7
percent
from the field,
and 30 percent
from the arc. At
times, he’s appeared to struggle
defensively,
playing
just
11
minutes in last Tuesday’s game
against Creighton, easily the
most talented competition this
Michigan team has faced so far
this season.
More and more, it seems that
DeJulius is the natural choice to
start, and that it’s only a matter
of time before he does. After
riding the bench for much of his
freshman year, looking up to
and learning from Simpson, it’s a
challenge DeJulius is ready for.
“Every game, I’m just trying to
continue to grow, I’m continuing
to grow,” DeJulius said. “I’m still
going through growing pains,
getting more experience, so I try
not to rush anything. I just try to
take whatever the defense gives
me.
“Each and every game, I watch
film, and see where I can be more
aggressive, and I just feel like it’s
more of a feeling thing.”
‘This is like giving CPR to my basketball career’
Juwan Howard impacting David DeJulius, other sophomores, with new confidence and energy
DANIEL DASH
Daily Sports Writer
Wolverines drop Big Ten final on PKs
It took penalties to decide
the winner of the Big Ten
Tournament.
A
high-intensity
Big
Ten
championship match resulted in
a battle between Michigan (11-
4-5 overall, 4-1-3 Big Ten) and
Indiana’s (14-2-4, 7-1-0) freshmen
goalkeepers.
The
Wolverines
ultimately fell to the eighth-
ranked
Hoosiers
4-3
during
penalty kicks.
“I’m really, really proud of their
effort, their commitment, their
quality today, and certainly we’re
disappointed,”
said
Michigan
coach Chaka Daley. “We thought
that we could be champions. PKs
is a harsh way to lose, but at some
point you gotta decide the game.”
At the start of the game,
Indiana
had
control
of
the
midfield, using its physicality to
block off Michigan players from
the ball and aggressively maintain
possession.
The
Wolverines’
midfielders’ attempts to push back
were often thwarted. However,
Michigan’s back line proved to be
its reliable strength as the defense
limited Indiana’s opportunities on
goal. Freshman goalkeeper Owen
Finnerty made an impressive save
14 minutes into the half to stop
Indiana forward Victor Bezerra’s
powerful shot from just outside
of the box. Finnerty deflected the
shot for a corner kick, showing
that he has what it takes to fill the
cleats of Big Ten goalkeeper of the
year, Michigan senior Andrew
Verdi, who has been out since
October 25 after suffering an
injury against Wisconsin.
The Wolverines’ front line
was finally able to ramp up the
pressure on the Indiana goal in
the final two minutes of the first
half, and they kept that aggressive
mentality in the second half
when they started to dominate
possession.
The Wolverines earned their
spot in Sunday’s championship
after defeating Penn State 1-0 in
the semifinals Friday afternoon,
when
senior
forward
Jack
Hallahan scored a strong free
kick shot up and over the wall of
Penn State defenders and chipped
off the post before connecting
inside the net.
Sophomore forward Derick
Broche continued to be involved
in plays towards the box during
Friday’s semifinal, being one of
the main point-producers for the
team overall this season with six
goals and three assists. But in
Sunday’s championship, Broche
missed a golden opportunity in
the second half for the Wolverines
to secure a goal in the second half
inside the six-yard box when his
attempt to hit the far post missed
over the net.
The Wolverines had other
opportunities during the second
half with six shots on goal,
while the Hoosiers had zero — a
surprise,
considering
Indiana
had 22 shots during its semifinal
matchup against Maryland.
Michigan’s final fate would
have been different if it could have
capitalized on one of its chances
on goal during the second half.
In
the
penalty
shootout,
Finnerty was unable to make a
second save to maintain the 3-3
tie and the Hoosiers celebrated
their second straight Big Ten
Tournament victory.
The Wolverines held the No.
8 team to just four shots during
the match. Despite the loss, this
championship game marked their
10th shut-out of the season, a
program record.
Now, Michigan awaits the
announcement of the NCAA
DI men’s soccer bracket on
Monday. The top-16 teams will
host the opening rounds of the
tournament.
“We’ll play another home game
at Michigan in the near future,
hopefully it’s Sunday so our guys
can get a little bit of rest and we’ll
go from there. But I think we’re
definitely deserving of a top-16
seed,” Daley said. “It’s the first
time in our program’s history
we’ve gone for three NCAA
Tournaments in a row, so it’s an
exciting time for the growth of
our program.”
OLIVIA MCKENZIE
For The Daily
ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily
The Michigan men’s soccer team lost to Indiana, 4-3, in the Big Ten Tournament final on Sunday afternoon.
Lambert’s woes emblematic of team
With one quick look up
the ice, Cam York knew his
teammate had a chance to make
a game-tying play.
The freshman defenseman
saw sophomore forward Jimmy
Lambert streaking through the
neutral zone and fired a stretch
pass from blueline to blueline,
right to the tape on Lambert’s
stick. Lambert had a step on
defenseman
Jerad
Rosburg,
and freshman forward Nick
Granowicz was just behind
Lambert coming down the right
side of the ice.
Lambert had a split second
to decide whether to shoot the
puck himself or pass across to
Granowicz on the backdoor.
That split second grew into
a full second, then two. The
hesitation
gave
Rosburg
a
chance to sprawl across the ice
to block the shot he thought was
coming — but it never came.
As he searched for the right
decision, Lambert overhandled
the puck and lost
control of it. A
brief moment of
lost control led
to a neutralized
scoring chance.
Instantly,
Michigan’s
chance to tie the
game was gone.
“He was trying
to
rush
and
then whether to
shoot or pass, I think he was
in between and he just lost
control of it,” said Michigan
coach Mel Pearson on Monday.
“That sort of sums up not only
how the weekend went but
how our season is going right
now. We get a great play, great
stretch pass coming in and
then you get overthinking and
you overhandle it and the next
thing you know, you’re losing
the puck.”
It wasn’t the first time in
the
Wolverines’
seven-game
winless skid that Lambert has
missed on a Grade-A scoring
chance.
On Nov. 8 against Minnesota,
freshman
forward
Johnny
Beecher sent a pass to a wide-
open Lambert on the doorstep
of the net. Lambert fanned on
his attempt at a shot before
tumbling onto the ice, his
chance at a game-winning goal
gone.
“Good opportunity coming
down the slot, just whiffs on it,”
Pearson said after that game.
“He had three or four (whiffs).
Once you’re not scoring and
you’re a forward, you really
start to press.
... It can get in
your head, and
we’ve
got
to
get
somebody
in here to calm
these guys and
have them relax
and not worry
about
that,
because
it’ll
come.”
For Lambert,
so far, it hasn’t.
He has been held without
a point since Oct. 19 and has
only one goal and one assist all
season.
“I don’t really care, honestly,”
Lambert said. “I’ve been getting
chances every night, so — a lot
of people in my life have always
told me that if you’re not getting
chances, then it’s time to be
worried. But I’ve been getting
chances every night, so sooner
or later, it’s going to go in.”
And
while
Lambert’s
offensive slump stands out after
he led all freshmen in points
last year with four goals and
nine assists, his difficulties are
only one example of a problem
that’s spread throughout the
locker room for Michigan. In
the
Wolverines’
seven-game
skid, they’ve scored two or more
goals in a game just twice and
have been shut out once.
“I think we’re so uptight
right now,” Pearson said. “Just
relax and be the player you
are and just simplify it. We are
overhandling the puck. The
more you handle it, the more
opportunity you have to lose it
or to miscue with it. Just keep
it simple.”
No one around the program
seems overly concerned about
the lack of offensive output.
The common refrain is that
Michigan is getting chances and
working hard, and eventually
the Wolverines’ luck will turn
and pucks will go in the net.
But
through
12
games,
Michigan ranks 43rd of 60
teams in the nation with 23
total goals and 51st in goals per
game at 1.92. The Wolverines
are dead last in the Big Ten
standings with only one point of
the 18 possible.
If Michigan is going to
turn this around, players like
Lambert will need to step up and
become consistent contributors.
But as Lambert has shown
lately,
getting
opportunities
isn’t
enough.
Games
aren’t
decided by shot differential,
they’re decided by goals scored
— and the Wolverines have
demonstrated an inability to put
the puck in the net.
And there’s no prize at the
end of the season for the team
with the most opportunities.
ABBY SNYDER
Daily Sports Writer
NATALIE STEPHENS/Daily
Sophomore guard David DeJulius is shooting 46.2 percent from the field after a strong performance against Elon.
I just play my
role and do
whatever I can
to stay out there.
BAILEY JOHNSON
Daily Sports Writer
ALEC COHEN/Daily
Sophomore forward Jimmy Lambert has struggled to generate offense.
Once you’re not
scoring ... you
really start to
press.