The Michigan Basketball program continued its downward spiral on Sunday, this time with a 23-point road loss to Ohio State. The loss moved the Wolverines to 8-22 on the season, including 3-16 in conference play – both records good for dead last in the Big Ten.
What’s worse is that, according to recent reporting by The Athletic, longtime Michigan Basketball strength coach Jon Sanderson has left the program after reaching a settlement relating to an altercation with head coach Juwan Howard. According to the report, Sanderson indicated that he had intervened when Howard’s son, Jace, was “berating” a member of the training staff, and that he was attempting to de-escalate the situation. It was at that point that, according to Sanderson, that Juwan Howard approached him in a fit of anger and attempted to fight.
“He kept aggressively pursuing me to fight, as the players and staff were doing their best to restrain him. He was out of control, it was an ugly scene. I had no choice but to stand my ground, I didn’t back down. A few of the players and staff got in front of me as well in an effort to keep us separated,” Sanderson wrote.
Sanderson was considered a highly respected member of the staff and had been with the program for 15 seasons.
While the incident with Sanderson would be concerning on its own, the reality is that this isn’t an isolated incident when it comes to Howard. In fact, Howard was placed on a “zero tolerance” policy for violence following an altercation with the Wisconsin coaching staff back in February 2022 – an incident that included Howard striking Badgers assistant coach Joe Krabbenhoft in the head. In addition to the zero tolerance policy, Howard was also fined $40,000 and given a five-game suspension following the incident.
A year prior to that, Howard was involved in another incident that could have turned ugly if not for several members of his staff restraining him. This time, Howard exchanged words with Maryland head coach Mark Turgeon, and the verbal altercation nearly turned physical when Howard lost his cool. Howard reportedly yelled, “I’ll f–king kill you,” in the direction of Turgeon.
The harsh reality is that Howard inherited a basketball program that was in a great place, and after five years of his leadership, the Wolverines are on track to have their worst season in program history. Win totals have decreased each year following the 2020-21 season, and there are no signs that Howard is equipped to turn things around anytime soon.
The downward trajectory of the program has put Howard squarely in the hotseat, with many calling on U-M AD Warde Manuel to remove him immediately.
