‘I’ve done this before’: Martelli leads Michigan for Howard

By ABIGAIL SNYDER
Associated Press

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Phil Martelli is all set to guide Michigan for the rest of the college basketball regular season. The 67-year-old Martelli will fill in while Wolverines head coach Juwan Howard serves a five-game suspension. Howard was penalized after hitting a Wisconsin assistant coach in the head during a postgame handshake line Sunday. Martelli has spent nearly four decades as a coach in big-time college hoops, and led Saint Joseph’s within one win of the Final Four in 2004. This is his third season as Michigan’s associate head coach. His first game will be Wednesday night when the Wolverines host Rutgers. Michigan is 14-11 this season. Howard is expected to return for the Big Ten Tournament, which begins March 9 in Indianapolis.