The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1438965
58 THE WOLVERINE JANUARY 2022 BY CHRIS BALAS J uwan Howard's third Michigan bas- ketball team is off to a slow start, go- ing 7-4 through 11 games and falling from the top 25. There's plenty of time to improve, though, and there's plenty of hope for the future. Howard and his staff signed another outstanding class with a quar- tet of four-star prospects, and all of them have hit the ground running in their senior years. Point guard Dug McDaniel (5-11, 167), the consensus No. 73 player in the country, has led his team to a 3-0 start. The Washington Post puts his Paul VI team No. 1 in the area, just ahead of three Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) foes. The conference is outstanding top to bottom, and McDaniel is the leader of its best team. He recently made the Post's "16 to watch" list. "With former stars Trevor Keels and Jeremy Roach playing for Duke, Mc- Daniel will be tasked with running the Panthers' backcourt," they wrote. "The Michigan [signee] is one of the quickest players in the area, but his ability to set up his young teammates will be key to Paul VI's success in the WCAC." McDaniel, also an outstanding foot- ball player for Paul VI, struggled a bit in his first game back switching between the two sports. "Michigan-bound Dug McDaniel had a rough night, going 2-12 from the field, 3-6 from the line and five turnovers," Point Guard Eyes tweeted after a win over Hillside (N.J.) Patrick Dec. 4. "But he was terrific defensively, had the ball on a string, provided timely leadership and contributed seven points, seven re- bounds and five assists." McDaniel notched 14 points, seven assists, six rebounds and four steals in a 74-58 win over Archbishop Spalding Dec. 5, and put up 20 points and five as- sists in a 75-74 victory over St. George (Va.) Blue Ridge Dec. 11. He earned game MVP honors at the Morgan Wooten Tip-Off event in the latter. "He put a ton of pressure on the de- fense and was at the rim all night," Point Guard Eyes reported. "He had a couple of acrobatic jelly rolls, a pair of sweet dump-offs and registered one serious ankle-breaker. The Michigan basketball signee was aggressive to the cup from the jump." In Florida, Jett Howard — Juwan's son and a 6-7 forward — continues to put up big numbers at Bradenton IMG Academy. On3.com's No. 34 se- nior nationally scored 12 in a Nov. 17 victory over Southwest Florida Chris- tian Academy and has only improved since. Howard scored 16 in a 68-62 loss to Sunrise Christian Dec. 2 and 11 with four rebounds in a big win over Mont- verde Academy — last year's national champion — Dec. 3. He saved his best for Game 3 of the U.S. Marines NIBC Series, going 7 of 9 from long range to score 26 points, while adding two assists, two rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots in a win over Oak Hill Academy Dec. 4. In Branson, Mo., Link Year Prep Academy's Tarris Reed (6-9, 230, con- sensus No. 43) also continues to elevate his play. He was one of the fastest ris- ers in the country this summer, moving from just outside the top 100 to the top 50, and he's proving why. He registered 15 points and eight re- bounds in a Nov. 19 win over Hunting- ton Prep, following up with 16 points and eight caroms in a victory over CBC a day later. Reed then notched 12 points, seven rebounds and five blocks in a win over Mitchell Nov. 25, and 15 points, four re- bounds and two blocks in a win over No. 9 Prolific Prep a day later. He fol- lowed up with 18 points, 10 rebounds, two steals and two blocks in a win over Dream City Christian Dec. 3. He registered 14 points, four rebounds and three blocks in a win over Veritas Prep Dec. 16, his latest big game. Back in Florida, signee Gregg Glenn (6-7, 215, the No. 81 prospect nation- ally per 247Sports) is doing well for his Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Calvary Christian squad. He scored 23 points in an 82- 30 win over Highlands Nov. 27 despite playing less than three quarters in the blowout. The situation was similar situ- ation in an 86-43 win over American Heritage Dec. 22. Glenn netted 22 in that contest. BASKETBALL RECRUITING Michigan Signees Have Gotten Off To A Good Start Four-star Dug McDaniel, one of three consensus four-stars signed in the 2021 class for Michigan, has his Paul VI team off to a 3-0 start and the No. 1 spot in The Washington Post's area rankings. PHOTO COURTESY ON3.COM