Juwan Howard on Michigan’s struggles: ‘I’ve never seen last place in my life’

There’s no secret Juwan Howard and Michigan have been struggling this season. The latest was a loss at home to Rutgers, 69-59, Saturday.

With No. 11 Wisconsin coming to town Wednesday, it doesn’t get any easier for the Wolverines. Howard once had this team rolling, but Michigan is now 7-15 on the season and 2-9 in conference play.

With that, Howard’s crew is at the bottom of the Big Ten.

“I’ve never seen last place before in my life when it came to playing on the collegiate level here and also now coaching,” Howard said postgame. “And this is the first time that we’re going to figure out a solution to get out of it. We’re not going to just give in to it.

“Continue to work in practice, drill what we feel are the habits that will help us. And then at the same time, hold guys accountable. When you’re not doing your job, then of course you can come sit next to [assistant coaches Howard Eisley and Saddi Washington].”

Losing by 10 can hurt, especially after leading 39-30 at halftime. Howard put the onus on him to find a way to fix things.

“You have to look yourself in the mirror and say, it starts with me first,” Howard said. “And then you gotta get uncomfortable. And during those moments of who’s going to take charge and be a leader when things are getting out of whack, I searched around and watched faces. Those faces didn’t look like there was a lot of confidence.”

It’s been a far cry since Michigan made two straight NCAA Tournaments. Last year, the Wolverines were bounced in the second round of the NIT and now the postseason does not look like a possibility in 2024.

“What stops the bleeding is pride,” Howard said. “Pride to have the mindset to go out and, whatever play it is, it has to be one of those where you roll your sleeves up, get your knees dirty. Those are the type of plays that we need. For example, driving to the basket during that stretch run that they had, thats gotta be where you’ve gotta have pride to sit down and guard and not allow a blow by. Or, an offensive rebound where you gotta have a certain level of fight and commitment to play physical by starting with the basics — boxing out and pursuing the basketball. If you box out, your opponent won’t get the basketball. Thats what also helped key their run.

“And then on the other end, because it became a compounded mistake when the ball is not going in for you offensively, then you get into your thoughts and you forget the defensive end. And then when a team scores, that’s when the doubt comes in. That’s what was displayed during that stretch run.”