Handling Central Michigan wasn’t the only problem the Michigan basketball team had to deal with yesterday. The Wolverines also had to cope with the loss of yet another member, when Dommanic Ingerson announced his intention to transfer from Michigan at the end of the semester.
- Paul Wong
- Ingerson
Ingerson would be the second Wolverine to depart from the team in the past week. Junior Avery Queen was dismissed for unspecified team rule violations after the team returned from the Paradise Jam last Wednesday.
“We are sorry to see Dommanic go,” Amaker said in a press release yesterday. “He feels a fresh start would be best for him at this time, and we wish him the best.”
Despite his departure, Ingerson was seen on the sideline at the game yesterday. The sophomore was on the court as the starting lineups were announced and spent the entire second half on the Michigan bench, joining the team during some timeout huddles.
After the game, members inside the Michigan program indicated that Ingerson was still making up his mind. But when asked if the athletic department planned to retract the press release, Michigan Media Relations Director Bruce Madej could not give a definitive answer.
After the game, Ingerson would not comment on his decision and was shielded from reporters by representatives of the program.
Ingerson spoke to his Santa Barbara High School coach Jeff Lavender a week and a half ago about the possibility of transfering.
“He mentioned (the idea of going to a) Pac-10 school, so I would presume UCLA or Southern Cal. – both of whom recruited him very heavily during high school,” Lavender said. “But I don’t have any idea, but I imagine that he would prefer a Pac-10 school.”
While he would not give a specific reason for his departure, injuries and a lack of playing time combined to frustrate the sophomore guard.
“He didn’t think that he was getting a fair shot at Michigan, so he wanted to go somewhere that he was going to get a chance to play,” Lavender said.
“I think it is a pretty recent decision. Once Michigan’s games started and he saw that he wasn’t getting in, I think that is when the wheels started turning.”
Lavender also pointed to the tendency of a new coach to favor his own recruits over those of a previous coach as a reason for Ingerson’s lack of play this season.
Ingerson’s grandfather, Herbert Morrow, reiterated that sentiment.
“I think Dommanic really wanted to stay because when he first went there he wanted to get away from the politics of schools out west and Michigan really wanted him to play,” Ingerson’s grandfather Herbert Morrow said. “It seems like when the season started, things started falling apart.
“Last year he said that Amaker didn’t recruit him so he felt that he was going to get left behind over the kids that Amaker brought in. It sounds like he (is) pushing his freshmen class and not too much concern for Dommanic. I think that had something to do with (his decision).”
Ingerson’s only action this season came during the Wolverine’s first exhibition game against Wayne State Nov. 1. In his third minute of play, he went up for a rebound but landed awkwardly, sending him out for the rest of the game.
With his leg still bothering him the weekend prior to Thanksgiving, Ingerson did not travel to the Virgin Islands for the Paradise Jam Tournament. Lavender said that Ingerson had even gone so far as to consider using his medical redshirt this year because of his injury.
Ingerson, who was known for his three-point shooting ability, averaged 8.1 points and 16.2 minutes per game last year.