Every player on the Michigan men’s basketball team experienced his fair share of losses last season. But what Daniel Horton went through transcended the game of basketball and changed his life forever.
Yes, he faced the 18 losses that the rest of the team experienced. Horton also felt the loss of a teammate when his friend Lester Abram suffered a season-ending shoulder injury early in the season. And the loss of his own season after pleading guilty to a domestic violence charge seemed to top it all off.
But the loss that trumped all others had nothing to do with basketball. It had to do with life, and it has given him a new perspective for his final year at Michigan.
“For me, personally, I don’t feel like anything that goes on as far as basketball really bothers me,” Horton said. “Things did at first, but I think going through what I went through makes me look at things differently.”
Horton’s low point came in March, just a day after it looked like things would turn around for the Texas native. On March 10, the day of his teammates’ final game of the season – a defeat at the hands of lowly Northwestern in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament – Horton became a father. But just a night later, the joy became pain once again, and Horton experienced the biggest loss he could imagine. Cameron Jeremiah Horton was taken away from him, dying from complications after birth.
Missing basketball games didn’t matter anymore. Neither did the team’s 13-18 record.
Horton went weeks without touching a basketball. He had to decide if he should even return to Michigan for his final season. When Horton did return, he did so as a new man. He knew he’d have to face questions about last year. Even though he doesn’t like doing it, Horton also doesn’t want to let go of what happened altogether.
“I want to put it behind me, but at the same time, I want to remember,” Horton said. “I want to look back on it and be able to learn from it and take things from it to help (me) and this team be successful now.
This mindset has helped propel Michigan to its best start in nearly a decade.
There is no 0-6 start like his freshman year, no sophomore slump like he had two years ago and no dismal 13-18 season on the horizon. This year’s team is 11-2 and is making strides toward earning its first NCAA tournament berth since the 1997-98 season.
Although there’s no C next to Horton’s name in the media guide, there’s no doubt who the leader of this team is.
“He’s been a player that’s always had the courage,” said Michigan coach Tommy Amaker. “He’s had the courage to step forward, to make a play, to try and pull things in our direction. He’s always willing to step forward. We want it in his hands.”
The team wants it in his hands, and he has no problem making those plays.
On the team’s first road trip – against Boston University – Horton’s scoring surge late in the game secured the win over the Terriers, who had beaten the Wolverines the previous two seasons.
It was Horton who stood toe-to-toe with Irish guard Chris Quinn on the road against Notre Dame, hitting a barrage of threes late and making the game-winning dish to Dion Harris to secure another road victory.
And it’s been Horton who has stepped up and emerged as Michigan’s workhorse down the stretch to fight off potential upset-hungry teams. He’s done it against Butler, he did it on Saturday against Purdue and he’s bound to do it again when his teammates need him the most.
Why feel pressure? It’s just basketball.
“I just have fun,” Horton said. “I try to go out there and play as hard as I can, but I just try to have fun.”
After everything Horton went through last year, it would be foolish to expect his life to hinge on a successful final season at Michigan. But the events from a year ago have allowed him to emerge as a better leader, and the Wolverines’ winning ways have brought back to his face the smile that was absent a year ago.