Michigan
Michigan basketball’s Tre Donaldson embracing villain role for Purdue clash
Danny Wolf leading the Michigan basketball turnaround
Tony and Andrew analyze reasons why Michigan basketball is succeeding and the impact of star forward Danny Wolf. Full “Hail Yes!” podcast out now.
All across Big Ten country, there’s a bit of a mystique that surrounds the aura of basketball facilities in Indiana.
Much like SEC-land for football, those in the Hoosier State say basketball just means more and a trio of college hoops cathedrals — from Butler’s Hinkle Fieldhouse to Indiana’s Assembly Hall to Purdue’s Mackey Arena — are just further evidence for that claim.
Not that Tre Donaldson is paying any mind to that.
Michigan basketball’s point guard is one several Wolverines who will be playing at Mackey in West Lafayette — perhaps the toughest of the bunch — for the first time on Friday as U-M visits the Boilermakers (8 p.m., Fox).
“Coming up north, everybody talks about Mackey, down south we don’t talk about arenas how everybody does up here,” Donaldson told media Thursday morning. “I guess it’s like a big deal? I haven’t really looked into it like that, not trying to be disrespectful or anything. I haven’t like, I don’t even know.
“We played at UCLA, at the Pavilion, I know a little bit about that. But not much about Mackey.”
A Tallahassee, Florida, native who played at Auburn the past two seasons, the former SEC guard was immediately asked about the toughest environments he had seen, with Kentucky’s Rupp Arena cited as a potential example.
“Rupp was crazy. That’s more my speed, being from down south,” he said. “That’s how Mackey is? They shoot fireworks at Mackey? In Rupp, they shoot fireworks for starters, indoors, like that blow up and cover everything.”
[ MUST LISTEN: Make “Hail Yes!” your go-to Michigan Wolverines podcast, available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify) ]
U-M’s brash point guard didn’t intend to display any disrespect, but he also isn’t willing to give an inch to the opponent, either.
A former four-star safety (and top-300 overall recruit per 247 Sports’ composite rankings) in the class of 2022, Donaldson ultimately chose to give up the gridiron for a life on the hardwood, but his mentality has carried over.
He has seen NCAA tournament environments and played rivals such as Alabama on the road, and as far as he’s concerned, there haven’t been enough of those opportunities to date.
“I’m on go whenever, like it doesn’t matter to me,” Donaldson said with a laugh. “I’m ready whenever. Whenever it goes down, it goes down. I’ll deal with it when it comes, that’s just mentally how I’m wired. I feel like (football) played a part in.”
Donaldson might also be irked by a feeling that he’s not fully on the Boilermakers’ radar. A backup his first two years at Auburn, Donaldson is now the emotional leader of a surprisingly good U-M team ostensibly built around a pair of primary stars in 7-footers Vladislav Goldin and Danny Wolf.
Likewise, during the media availability Thursday ahead of the the matchup between No. 20 Michigan (14-4, 6-1 Big Ten) and No. 12 Purdue (15-5, 6-2), there were several questions about another point guard, Purdue’s Braden Smith.
Smith has been perhaps the top point guard in the league this season, averaging 15 points and a conference-leading 8.9 assists — with nearly three times as many assists (177) as turnovers (57). The junior drew praise from U-M’s defensive coordinator, Mike Boynton Jr., on Thursday, too..
“I didn’t appreciate how smart he was,” Boynton said, referencing his film study. “He’s had so many reps, the benefit of being in a system over time. … It’s almost like he knows exactly what to expect every single possession, so with a guy like that, you gotta keep him off balance.
“Like a great quarterback, he knows the coverage, he’s going to make a play.”
For his part, Donaldson didn’t seem concerned over how to stop the pick-and-roll duo of Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue’s big man now averaging 18.3 points and 6.5 rebounds a night.
“I mean just Braden Smith’s basketball …” Donaldson said before cutting himself off. “I mean, they gonna have to guard too. Everybody wants to give them their flowers offensively. They got to come down to the other end and guard us as well.”
Donaldson has had more assists than turnovers in five consecutive games, a stretch that saw him average eight points and five assists in two home games and 16.7 points and six assists in three games away from Crisler Center.
As U-M goes into its toughest test yet, Donaldson is ready to try and silence the loudest crowd yet.
“I like it better, I feel like I play better on the road,” Donaldson said. “I go in there, I want everybody to hate me. I’m jumping around, singing the whole time during warmups. Like, that’s just who I am.
“I take on that villain role on the road and I enjoy it.”
Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Harmful algal blooms have been reported on two notable lakes in West Michigan: Gun Lake and Muskegon Lake.
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy says cyanobacteria was reported on Muskegon Lake July 3, but no tests have confirmed it.
The Barry-Eaton District Health Department says a harmful algal bloom was confirmed Thursday on Gun Lake. The lake remains open, but the BEDHD is encouraging visitors to use caution and avoid water that has “visible algae.”
Visitors are encouraged to avoid any contact with water that appears bright green, blue-green, brown or red or has “floating mats of scum.”
Pets should also avoid the water. If they come into contact with the algae, pets should be rinsed off as soon as possible with clean, fresh water.
Exposure to algae can cause a rash or irritation to the skin, eyes, nose and throat. It can also cause stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, fever and trouble breathing.
“If you become sick, contact your healthcare provider. Seek medical care right away if you have trouble breathing, severe vomiting, or other serious symptoms,” the BEDHD said in a statement. “If your pet was exposed, rinse them well with clean water and do not let them lick their fur until they have been washed. Contact your veterinarian right away if your pet has vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, trouble walking, excessive drooling, shaking, or seizures.”
Harmful algal blooms are powered by the sudden growth of cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae. Cyanobacteria occur naturally in lakes, rivers and ponds but is often boosted by a sudden excess of nutrients, often caused by fertilizer runoff from farms or failed septic systems.
They can last for several days and sometimes even months. The water will look “scummy” or like “spilled paint or pea soup.” They are typically found in the summer and fall — usually peaking in August or September and dying off by the end of October.
You can report a suspected harmful algal bloom to EGLE at AlgaeBloom@Michigan.gov or 1.800.662.9278.
Sterling Stamping Plant is the largest in the world
Ed Daniels, vice president of North America injection and stamping operations, discusses the process of producing metal parts for Stellantis models.
Warren — Hulking metal presses line one wall of Stellantis NV’s cavernous stamping plant here, punching out the raw shapes of Jeep doors, Dodge hoods and Ram tailgates in rapid succession.
Nearby, swinging yellow robots continue the tightly choreographed work, gluing and pressing and welding smaller components to the sheet metal that eventually will start to resemble the shape of a truck or SUV.
Seven miles north, in Sterling Heights, Stellantis operates an even larger stamping plant — the biggest in the world, at 2.7 million square feet — that does much of the same work, churning out various shapes of steel and aluminum 24 hours a day.
Together, these lesser-known links in the manufacturing supply chain support all of Stellantis’ big North American assembly plants — from next-door Warren Truck Assembly Plant, where the Jeep Grand Wagoneer SUV is built, to facilities in Windsor and Mexico that make minivans and pickups.
Inside Stellantis’ Huge Detroit Stamping Plants
The Detroit News recently got a rare look inside the automaker’s Sterling and Warren stamping plants, which are key to the company’s turnaround plan.
The Metro Detroit stamping plants, the automaker’s only two such facilities in the United States, have at times struggled in recent years, facing major job cuts and worker morale issues amid slowing sales and shifting production plans. But under Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa, the facilities are expected to cram in more workload — and add staff — as Stellantis begins a new five-year strategic turnaround plan, which includes a heavy focus on its most profitable North American market.
The carmaker’s goal: grow sales by more than a third to 1.9 million annually by 2030 as it launches 23 vehicles, including 11 all-new models. The company also is directing billions of dollars of investment into its U.S. manufacturing footprint due to President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
“Stamping has never really been viewed as the sexy side of automotive manufacturing, we’re relatively invisible,” said Ed Daniels Jr., vice president of North America injection and stamping operations. “Because when you look at the commercials and advertisements, it’s always a beautiful Ram rolling off the assembly line or climbing the side of a mountain.
“But we’re the inception of that vehicle,” he said. “This is where raw materials are turned into commodities and parts.”
The Detroit News recently got a rare look inside the two plants that combined employ about 3,000 people. The automaker wanted to show off a newly-installed blanking press at Warren Stamping and other machinery like a high-speed transfer press and a robot that spots flaws in the metal.
Hiring expected
The blanking press unspools long coils of metal and chops them up into pieces that can then be shaped into roofs, fenders and floor pans. Stellantis shipped the massive machine to Warren from its idled Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois last year.
After upgrades to the machine, executives said it’s able to produce as many as 120,000 metal blanks per week. It will save Stellantis money since the plant will no longer need to pay a supplier to break down the coils before the metal arrives there.
The blanker addition is a big deal for the plant and signals that the company wants to bring more work in-house and invest in the facility over the coming years, said Romaine McKinney III, president of United Auto Workers Local 869, which represents workers at the factory.
The plant has already brought back all of its laid-off UAW workers, and McKinney said he anticipates more hiring to get underway if sales grow and new Stellantis vehicles come to market.
In another corner of the Warren facility, one of the fastest press lines in the world — known internally as the Hellcat — pushes as many as 15 pieces of metal through per minute. Dies that weigh up to 50 tons apiece squish the material into the shapes of doors and hoods before robotic arms snatch them out and place them on conveyor belts. Midway through a shift, workers can reconfigure the machine to make a different component, a process that takes just five minutes.
Robots check for quality
Curtis Booth, who manages Warren Stamping, said manual processes inside the plant have become increasingly automated, and safer, over the last couple decades, even as the automaker’s two stamping factories still utilize some presses that were installed in the 1960s.
The latest high-tech addition is the Automated Body Inspection System, or ABIS. It’s a camera system mounted on a robot that automatically checks the quality of components and flags anything in need of repair.
Auto plants of all kinds are increasingly turning to these types of camera systems, infused with artificial intelligence, to catch flaws in sheet metal and other components before they are shipped. Booth said worker visual inspections are still used. But in some cases the human eye has too much subjectivity, and the ABIS removes the guesswork.
Greg Bauer, who manages Sterling Stamping, said his plant has added staff over the past year, and expects to continue hiring as more work is assigned to the facility. There is no space at the plant to add more presses, but officials have figured out how to increase efficiency — quickly toggling back and forth between making doors for a Chrysler Pacifica and Dodge Charger on on a single machine, for example.
“We want to bring high-volume parts into the plant, and we want to maximize the capacity of the equipment,” Daniels said.
lramseth@detroitnews.com
MENOMINEE, Mich. (WLUK) — 24-year-old Ethan Raymond Masters of Menominee was arrested on sexual assault charges June 30th, according to the Menominee County Sheriff’s Office.
According to a news release from the Sheriff’s Office, deputies learned of an incident involving a 24-year-old man and a 12-year-old girl which happened in Menominee June 22nd. Following a sexual assault investigation, police charged Masters.
Masters was arraigned July 2nd on 2 counts of Criminal Sexual Conduct First Degree. He remains in the Menominee County Jail on a $250,000 cash bond.
Menominee City Police and the Michigan State Police Crime Laboratory of Marquette assisted with the investigation.
-
Lifestyle3 minutes ago
Iris van Herpen Reaches for the Stars
-
Technology15 minutes agoNo, Flock isn’t threatening people for debating surveillance
-
World17 minutes agoIsrael signals readiness for another Iran strike as Trump declares ceasefire over
-
Politics23 minutes agoKelley Paul: America’s Founders were the ‘first civil rights heroes’
-
Health30 minutes agoYour resting heart rate could reveal more about your health than you think, doctors say
-
Sports33 minutes agoShohei Ohtani ruled out of MLB All-Star Game as Dodgers plan to manage nagging injury
-
Technology45 minutes agoFake VA shoe offer targets veterans
-
Business48 minutes agoLos Angeles hotels saved by last-minute surge in World Cup bookings
