Derrick Walton

Derrick Walton

No. 10 – Michigan Wolverines
Position Point guard
League Big Ten Conference
Personal information
Born April 3, 1995
Detroit, Michigan
Nationality American
Listed height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Listed weight 185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High school Chandler Park Academy
(Harper Woods, Michigan)
College Michigan (2013–present)
Career highlights and awards

Derrick Walton, Jr. (born April 3, 1995) is an American college basketball player for The University of Michigan where he has completed his sophomore season for the 2014–15 team. He was a 2013 Parade All-American, the 2013 Michigan Boys Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year and the runner up in the 2013 Mr. Basketball of Michigan as a senior at Chandler Park Academy. He was a 2013–14 Big Ten Conference men's basketball season All-Freshman selection in the Big Ten for the 2013–14 team.

Early life

Walton was born in Detroit, Michigan to Angela and Derrick Walton Sr. on April 3, 1995.[1] Walton had considered attending Saginaw High School with a close friend of his named Dorian Dawkins, but Dawkins collapsed at a basketball camp on June 12, 2009 due to a heart defect and Walton Sr. got the coaching job at Chandler Park Academy.[2] June 13, 2011 was the first day that Michigan offered scholarships to the class of 2013.[3] On August 1, 2011, Walton announced his non-binding verbal commitment to Michigan. At the time, he was ranked 77th, 88th and 92nd in the class of 2013 according to Scout.com, Rivals.com and ESPN.com, respectively.[4] This commitment came one day after Zak Irvin joined Michigan's 2013 recruiting class.[3] As a junior, he had a breakout season that included posting 47 points and had 12 rebounds against Crockett High School on March 9, 2012, and a quadruple-double against Cesar Chavez Academy on January 31, 2012.[5] During the summer of 2012, Walton jumped in the Rivals.com ranking from 57th to 44th in the national class of 2013.[6] On November 16, 2012, Michigan men's basketball received a signed National Letter of Intent from the 6-foot (1.83 m) Walton.[5] At Chandler Park Academy, he was 2013 Mr. Basketball of Michigan runner up by a 2130–2086 margin to Iowa State signee Monte Morris but had one more 1st place vote.[7][8] He was a 2013 Parade All-American honoree and the Michigan Boys Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year.[9][10] By the end of his high school career, he was ranked 37th by Rivals.[11]

Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Derrick Walton
PG		 Detroit, MI Chandler Park Academy (MI) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 172.5 lb (78.2 kg) Aug 1, 2011 
Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 89
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 36, 7 (PG)   Rivals: 37, 8 (PG)  ESPN: 30, 8 (PG), 2 (MI)
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

College

Walton joined a team that had just lost Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway, Jr. to the 2013 NBA draft.[12][13] The 2012–13 Wolverines had reached the championship game of the 2013 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, losing to Louisville.[14]

Freshman season

Walton shoots over Jabari Parker of Duke
Walton and DeAndre Mattieu in the Michigan–Minnesota 2013–14 Big Ten season opener

In September 2013, Sports Illustrated named him the 9th best freshman.[15] Sporting News named him the 3rd best Big Ten newcomer.[16] On November 8, the Wolverines opened the season against against UMass Lowell. Michigan played 6 freshman and Walton started.[17][18] Michigan played its third game of Walton's freshman season against Morris' Iowa State Cyclones and Walton outscored Morris by a 13–2 margin, but it was Iowa State who won the contest, upsetting the AP Poll #7/Coaches Poll #8 Wolverines 77–70 on November 17.[19] On November 22 against Florida State, Walton contributed 15 points, 6 assists and 4 rebounds to a two-point overtime victory.[20] Walton posted 7 assists for the first time on November 29 against Coppin State.[21][22] On January 9 against Nebraska, Walton contributed key baskets at the end of each half in a one point victory, giving Michigan its first 5-game win streak since the 2013 NCAA tournament. He made a buzzer beater from beyond half court before the half to give Michigan a halftime lead and a layup in Michigan's final possession to take the lead.[23][24] On January 25 in the Michigan–Michigan rivalry game, Walton set a new career high with a team-high (tied with Nik Stauskas) 19 points and added 6 rebounds and 4 assists to help Michigan defeat the (#3)[25] Michigan State Spartans 80–75.[26] The victory marked the first time in school history that the team defeated three consecutive AP Poll top ten opponents and marked the first time since the 1986–87 Iowa Hawkeyes that any team has won three consecutive games all of which were against top 10 opponents.[27] It also gave Michigan a 7–0 Big Ten start, which is the best since the 1976–77 team won its first eight games.[27] In the game, Walton went 9-for-10 from the free throw line including 8-for-9 in the final two and a half minutes. For the week, Walton earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week recognition.[28][29] On February 11, Walton posted his first double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds against Ohio State helping Michigan win at Ohio State for the first time in 11 years.[30][31] Following the regular season, he was named a Big Ten All-Freshman team selection by the coaches.[32][33] The 2013–14 team advanced to the elite eight round of the 2014 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament before being eliminated by Kentucky.[34] He posted a career-high 4 steals in an upset loss against the EMU Eagles.[35][36]

Sophomore season

Walton's season was cut short in January.

In its preseason top 100 player rankings, ESPN ranked Walton #87.[37] Walton was named along with Big Ten point guards Yogi Ferrell and Melo Trimble to the 36-man Bob Cousy Award Preseason Watch List.[38][39]

When Walton and Caris LeVert were sidelined for the season in January 2015, the 2014–15 Wolverines began to struggle

Walton opened the season with a career-high 22 points against Hillsdale College on November 15.[40][41] On November 29, he was sidelined with an undetermined toe injury against Nicholls State.[42] On December 9, Walton set a career high with 4 steals in a loss against Eastern Michigan.[43][44] On December 22, Walton posted a career high of 9 assists against Coppin State.[45][46] In the January 17 win vs. Northwestern, Walton made a career-high 4 three point shots.[47][48] On January 20 against Rutgers in the first game after Caris LeVert (the team's leader in scoring, rebounding, assists, steals and minutes) was lost for the season, Walton scored a team-high 12 points, including 10 as Michigan rallied from a 42–37 deficit to assume a 52–44 lead with just 32.5 seconds left. The 10 points included two three pointers that tied the score at 42 and gave Michigan a 45–42 lead and 4 free throws in the final minute.[49][50] On January 24, Walton scored a team-high 17 and hit a 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds to go against (AP #6/Coaches #5)[51] Wisconsin to tie the game and send it to overtime, but Michigan eventually lost.[52] On January 27 Walton was sidelined as Michigan defeated Nebraska, which began extended time out of the lineup.[53][54] Walton missed the January 27 game against Nebraska and the final 12 games of the season due to a toe injury.[55][56][57]

Notes

  1. ↑ "Derrick Walton Jr. 10". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2013-09-29.
  2. ↑ Rothstein, Michael (2013-07-01). "Inspiration for Michigan's new PG". ESPN. Retrieved 2013-09-29.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Michigan basketball team adds Zak Irvin to 2013 recruiting class". Ann Arbor News. 2011-07-31. Retrieved 2013-09-29.
  4. ↑ "Michigan basketball adds another top 100 recruit for 2013, point guard Derrick Walton". Ann Arbor News. 2011-08-01. Retrieved 2013-09-29.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Michigan Inks Three Recruits to National Letters of Intent". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2012-11-16. Retrieved 2012-11-26.
  6. ↑ Burkhardt, Dylan (2012-08-28). "Irvin, Walton rise in post-summer Rivals ranking update". UMHoops.com. Retrieved 2012-11-27.
  7. ↑ McCabe, Mick (2013-03-18). "Monte Morris of Flint Beecher named Mr. Basketball". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2013-03-20.
  8. ↑ McCabe, Mick (2013-03-18). "Monte Morris of Flint Beecher named Mr. Basketball". USA Today. Retrieved 2013-07-26.
  9. ↑ McLaughlin, Brian (2013-05-18). "Meet PARADE's 2013 All-America Basketball Teams". Parade. Retrieved 2013-05-19.
  10. ↑ Snyder, Mark (2013-03-21). "Michigan Recruits Derrick Walton Jr., Zak Irvin Named Gatorade Players of the Year". USA Today. Retrieved 2013-09-25.
  11. ↑ "2013 Prospect Ranking: Rivals150 for the class of 2013". Rivals.com. 2013-04-15. Retrieved 2013-04-15.
  12. ↑ "Burke Chosen No. 9, Traded to Utah; Hardaway Taken by Knicks". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  13. ↑ "Burke, Hardaway Selected in First Round of NBA Draft". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  14. ↑ "Louisville outlasts Michigan to win national championship". ESPN. 2013-04-08. Retrieved 2013-04-09.
  15. ↑ Johnson, Chris (2013-09-23). "Sizing up 2013-14's best college hoops recruits". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2013-09-25.
  16. ↑ "McGary Selected to Sporting News' Preseason All-America Team". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2013-09-06. Retrieved 2013-09-07.
  17. ↑ "Postgame Notes: #7 Michigan 69, UMass Lowell 42". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2013-11-08. Retrieved 2013-11-09.
  18. ↑ "Mass Lowell 42 (0-1, 0-1 away); (7) Michigan 69 (1-0, 1-0 home)". ESPN. 2013-11-08. Retrieved 2013-11-09.
  19. ↑ "(7) Michigan 70 (2-1, 0-1 away); Iowa State 77 (3-0, 3-0 home)". ESPN. 2013-11-17. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
  20. ↑ "(14) Michigan 82 (4-1, 0-1 away); Florida State 80 (4-1, 2-0 home)". ESPN. 2013-11-22. Retrieved 2014-01-15.
  21. ↑ "Freshman Irvin scores 24, No. 22 Michigan rolls". ESPN. 2013-11-29. Retrieved 2013-11-29.
  22. ↑ "Irvin's 24 Points Lead Michigan to Victory Over Coppin State". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2013-11-29. Retrieved 2013-11-29.
  23. ↑ "Michigan wins 71-70 over Nebraska on Walton layup". ESPN. 2014-01-09. Retrieved 2014-01-10.
  24. ↑ "Postgame Notes: Michigan 71, Nebraska 70". MGoBlue. CBS Interactive. 2014-01-10. Retrieved 2014-01-10.
  25. ↑ "Saturday's Men's Basketball Results". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. 2014-01-25. Retrieved 2014-01-26.
  26. ↑ "Michigan holds off short-handed Michigan St. to stay perfect in Big Ten". ESPN. 2014-01-25. Retrieved 2014-01-26.
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 "Postgame Notes #21 Michigan 80, #3 Michigan State 75". MGoBlue. CBS Interactive. 2014-01-25. Retrieved 2014-01-26.
  28. ↑ "Michigan Sweeps Weekly Men's Basketball Honors". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. 2014-01-27. Retrieved 2014-01-27.
  29. ↑ "Big Week Nets Big Ten Honors for Stauskas, Walton". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2014-01-27. Retrieved 2014-01-27.
  30. ↑ "No. 15 Michigan beats Ohio State for 1st Columbus win in 11 years". ESPN. 2014-02-11. Retrieved 2014-02-12.
  31. ↑ "Postgame Notes #10 Michigan 79, Nebraska 50". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2014-02-05. Retrieved 2014-02-06.
  32. ↑ "Big Ten Announces 2014 Men's Basketball Postseason Honors: Michigan's Stauskas named Big Ten Player of the Year". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. 2014-03-10. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
  33. ↑ "Stauskas Big Ten's Top Player; Beilein Coach of the Year". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2014-03-10. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
  34. ↑ "(8) Kentucky 75 (28-10, 12-6 SEC); (2) Michigan 72 (28-9, 15-3 Big Ten)". ESPN. 2014-03-30. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
  35. ↑ "E Michigan 45 (8-1, 1-1 away); Michigan 42 (6-3, 5-2 home)". ESPN. 2014-12-09. Retrieved 2014-12-14.
  36. ↑ "Postgame Notes: Eastern Michigan 45, Michigan 42". ESPN. 2014-12-09. Retrieved 2014-12-14.
  37. ↑ "College Hoops Rankings: 100-80". ESPN. 2014-10-29. Retrieved 2014-11-03.
  38. ↑ "Men's Basketball Weekly Release: Nine different Big Ten teams received votes in the Associated Press (AP) or USA Today Coaches' preseason top 25 polls". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. 2014-11-11. Retrieved 2014-11-12.
  39. ↑ Vecenie, Sam (2014-11-04). "Bob Cousy Award Preseason Watch List for 2015 released". CBS Sports. Retrieved 2014-11-12.
  40. ↑ "No. 24 Michigan eases past Hillsdale 92-68". ESPN. 2014-11-15. Retrieved 2014-11-16.
  41. ↑ "Postgame Notes: #24 Michigan 92, Hillsdale College 68". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2014-11-15. Retrieved 2014-11-16.
  42. ↑ "No. 19 Michigan routs Nicholls St 91-62". ESPN. 2014-11-29. Retrieved 2014-11-30.
  43. ↑ "Michigan falls to Eastern Michigan for 2nd straight home upset". ESPN. Associated Press. 2014-12-09. Retrieved 2014-12-23.
  44. ↑ "Postgame Notes: Eastern Michigan 45, Michigan 42". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2014-12-10. Retrieved 2014-12-25.
  45. ↑ "Postgame Notes: Michigan 72, Coppin State 56". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2014-12-22. Retrieved 2014-12-23.
  46. ↑ "Michigan ends skid with 72-56 win over Coppin State". ESPN. Associated Press. 2014-12-22. Retrieved 2014-12-23.
  47. ↑ "Postgame Notes: Michigan 56, Northwestern 54". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2015-01-17. Retrieved 2015-01-21.
  48. ↑ "Northwestern 54 (10-8, 1-4 Big Ten); Michigan 56 (11-7, 4-2 Big Ten)". ESPN. 2015-01-17. Retrieved 2015-01-21.
  49. ↑ "Postgame Notes: Michigan 54, Rutgers 50". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2015-01-20. Retrieved 2015-01-21.
  50. ↑ "Short-handed Michigan edges Rutgers 54-50". ESPN. Associated Press. 2015-01-20. Retrieved 2015-01-21.
  51. ↑ "Saturday's Men's Basketball Lineup: Five games on Saturday's slate". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. 2015-01-24. Retrieved 2015-01-25.
  52. ↑ "Frank Kaminsky, No. 6 Wisconsin hold off Michigan in overtime". ESPN. Associated Press. 2015-01-24. Retrieved 2015-01-25.
  53. ↑ "Irvin Gets Double-Double; Bielfeldt Nears One as U-M Triumphs". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2015-01-27. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  54. ↑ "Michigan beats Nebraska 58-44". ESPN. Associated Press. 2015-01-27. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  55. ↑ "Irvin Gets Double-Double; Bielfeldt Nears One as U-M Triumphs". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2015-01-27. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  56. ↑ "Michigan beats Nebraska 58-44". ESPN. Associated Press. 2015-01-27. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  57. ↑ "Postgame Notes: Wisconsin 71, Michigan 60". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2015-03-13. Retrieved 2015-03-18.

External links