Michigan's Dug McDaniel suspended for next six road games due to academics

Michigan basketball’s season was already spiraling. Now it’s in danger of completely falling off a cliff.

Sophomore guard Dug McDaniel announced on social media that he will be suspended for the next six road games, starting with Thursday’s trip to Maryland.

According to the program, the suspension is for academic reasons. Classes for Michigan’s winter semester began Wednesday. McDaniel is enrolled in the College of Literature, Science and Arts but hasn’t declared a major.

“Will be serving a 6 away game suspension starting tomorrow,” McDaniel wrote in a post. “Im (sic) active for every home game tho. Please don’t dm me or ask me about it just respect it.

“Will be back on the road next month til then my brothers gon hold it down. See yall at home.”

Shortly after McDaniel’s social media post, coach Juwan Howard released a statement on the matter.

“We have very high standards within our program, culture and university,” Howard said in a statement. “Serving as mentors, we need to set the standards and pathways for our young men to succeed. Beginning with our game at Maryland, Dug McDaniel will not travel to road games until further notice.

“Dug will dress for home games, however, when we are away from Ann Arbor, he will work toward meeting several academic goals he has set and needs to meet. While I am disappointed, this is not something we take lightly. This is an important step for Dug and his success as a student-athlete.”

For a Michigan team that was struggling to win with McDaniel in the lineup and whose season was looking bleak, it could spell disaster. Michigan’s next six road games are against Maryland (Thursday), Purdue (Jan. 23), Michigan State (Jan. 30), Nebraska (Feb. 10), Illinois (Feb. 13) and Northwestern (Feb. 22).

After starting the season with three consecutive blowout wins, the Wolverines have lost nine of the past 12 games and are sitting at the bottom of the Big Ten standings with a 1-3 record.

The defense has been a mess. A lack of depth and bench production has been problematic. Michigan has struggled to close out tight games, just like last season. One of the few bright spots has been McDaniel, who’s averaging a team-best 17.8 points and 5.1 assists.

Now, the Wolverines face the herculean task of trying to turn things around to avoid the program’s first losing season since 2009-10 by winning on the road without their leading scorer, whom Howard called one of the improved players in college basketball.

“Being a point guard is one of the toughest positions to transition to straight out of high school. But Dug, last year, he did a really good job with it,” Howard said last month. “This year the game has really slowed down where he's able to make reads, where he's not trying to hit the home-run play. He feels confident that the simple play will work. His teammates trust him. The coaching staff, we all trust him.

“You could look at it that his points are so high compared to his freshman year. When you play with a guy like Hunter (Dickinson), Jett (Howard), Kobe (Bufkin), someone has to sacrifice. But now more of that offensive load is in his hands and he has embraced it. He's done a very good job with it.”

McDaniel’s shooting numbers — 48.7% on 2-pointers and 38.2% on 3-pointers — are up across the board. He’s gotten to the free-throw line more than any player on Michigan. He’s tied for the team lead with 34 made deep balls. He’s doubled his scoring output from his freshman year (8.6 points) and has posted six 20-point games, highlighted by a pair of career-best 33-point outings against Florida and Oregon.

Among Big Ten players, he ranks fourth in assists, seventh in scoring and leads everyone with 36.1 minutes played per game.

Given the way Michigan’s roster is constructed, the Wolverines have had to rely heavily on McDaniel’s creativity, playmaking and ability to penetrate the paint as their primary ball-handler, a reason why he’s played every single minute in numerous contests.

“Dug has led us in a lot of ways, just being that facilitator and getting guys the ball in spots that can be effective,” Howard said last month. “I love seeing how he's blossomed. He’s going to continue to keep getting better because the kid loves basketball.”

With McDaniel only available for home games for the foreseeable future, sixth-year guard Jaelin Llewellyn and freshman George Washington III are the likely candidates to be called upon to step up and do more in the backcourt on the road.

Llewellyn was Michigan’s starting point guard for the first eight games last season before he tore his ACL on Dec. 4, 2022. After a long road to recovery, he was cleared and made his season debut nearly a year to the date — on Dec. 2 at Oregon.

But Llewellyn hasn’t looked the same and has been dinged up since his return. He didn’t suit up at Iowa due to knee soreness and he missed the McNeese State game due to being in concussion protocol. In five games this season, he’s averaging 2.2 points and an assist in nine minutes.

Washington’s playing time off the bench has been sporadic. He’s made 10 appearances, but half of his 59 total minutes came in the first two games against UNC Asheville (16) and Youngstown State (14). In the 13 games since, he’s played five or more minutes just three times.

“We're looking forward to watching George's growth. As far as where he is from when he first set foot on campus to where he is now, it's been a big improvement,” Howard said last month. “Jaelin's health is always going to be the key.

“We're going to need those guys to help us win ball games.”

Now more than ever.

jhawkins@detroitnews.com

@jamesbhawkins