Michigan basketball needs 'the best Brandon Johns' to show up against Rutgers

Michigan Wolverines basketball will be shorthanded against Rutgers for a second time this season.

The Maize and Blue were without senior forward Brandon Johns Jr., sophomore forward Terrance Williams II and freshman guard Frankie Collins in January’s meeting in January (illnesses). They’ll take on the Scarlet Knights with no Williams or freshman forward Moussa Diabate Wednesday night, with the duo serving one-game suspensions in the wake of the Wisconsin-Michigan scuffle Sunday afternoon in Madison.

A five-star freshman, Diabate is averaging 9.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, and put up a career-high 28 points at Iowa just last week. Williams is the Wolverines’ only non-starter who sees more than 15 minutes per outing (15.1), posting 4.3 points and 2.5 boards.

Michigan’s bench plays just 23.1 percent of the team’s overall minutes, which slots 324th nationally. A team without much depth is that much more thin in one of the most crucial games of the season.

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It’s not a must win for Michigan Wednesday at Crisler, but with it qualifying as a Quad 3 game for the Wolverines, the least difficult remaining contest on the regular-season schedule, it’s one acting head coach Phil Martelli and Co. really want to have as they fight for an NCAA Tournament bid at 14-11 overall and 8-7 in the Big Ten.

It’d be one thing to lose a guard and a forward, but two guys who play similar positions means the rotation will be wonky. Not only is Diabate the starting power forward, he’s the backup center too. Johns will likely start, and sophomore guard Jace Howard, who’s played more forward as of late, and fifth-year senior walk-on Jaron Faulds will probably see time off the bench. We saw a similar rotation with the aforementioned duo of reserves playing a bigger role when Michigan was without sophomore center Hunter Dickinson and Johns in a loss at Illinois in January.

Like Martelli — who’s filling in for Howard, who was suspended for the remainder of the regular season over the next five games — isn’t trying to impersonate Michigan’s head coach, Johns won’t attempt to be Diabate. That’s not what the Wolverines are asking of him. They’ll have to get an increased level of production from the rest of the starters, and get enough from the senior.

“I expect them to be the very best they can be,” Martelli said of Johns and Michigan’s other front court replacements. “I’m in a similar role to them. I’m not Juwan Howard. I am not. And Brandon Johns is not Moussa.

“So, be the best Brandon Johns, and be able to work out of here tomorrow night and say, ‘That was as good as I could give.’ And guess what? Take Thursday off and come back Friday and be better than you were on Wednesday.”

All eyes are on Johns, who began the year as a starter but was passed over for Diabate after totaling 32 points, 15 rebounds and 10 turnovers during a rough first six games to what was supposed to be his year to step into a full-time prominent role. He’s averaging 3.8 points and 2.1 boards in 13.5 minutes per game this season, scoring in double figures just once. The East Lansing, Mich., native hasn’t scored a point since Feb 10 against Purdue.

“You can’t come up with a game plan and say, well, Moussa averages 8.1 [points per game], so how are we able to get 8.1 — no, that’s not going to work,” the Michigan associate head coach continued. “But if Brandon Johns walks in here tomorrow night with his head up, his mind clear and heart knowing that we need the best Brandon Johns in order to beat Rutgers, then that’s going to be good enough.”

Martelli noted that Williams and Diabate are allowed to practice, and they’ve been key contributors on the scout team over the last few days.

“They did it with joy in their hearts,” Martelli said of the suspended Wolverines.

Brandon Johns Has Shown He Can Step Up

This isn’t Johns’ first rodeo, which is the biggest reason why the step back he’s taken this year has been baffling. He’s started 23 career games at Michigan, including 11 when Isaiah Livers was hurt in 2019-20. He filled in for an injured Livers — a second-round pick to the Detroit Pistons — during the postseason in 2020-21, too.

He averaged 10 points and 3.3 rebounds per game during last season’s NCAA Tournament, including a 14-point outing in the Sweet 16 against Florida State, helping lead the Wolverines to the Elite Eight.

Playing with aggression and confidence have been keys for Johns throughout his career. He credited both for his success during last year’s tournament run. Heading into the year, he was looking to build on that. It hasn’t gone as planned, obviously, but he has a chance to turn things around, starting Wednesday night.

“I definitely want to keep that mentality throughout this year, just to be confident, to play my game and not change it for anything. To put all the effort out there for my teammates.”

Johns has proven he has what it takes to be a steady contributor. Michigan will need it Wednesday.