Ohio State announced this afternoon that sophomore guards Luther Muhammad and Duane Washington have been suspended for Tuesday night’s game against Nebraska.
The duo were suspended for “a failure to meet program standards and expectations.”
Washington only played eight minutes in Saturday’s loss at Indiana. Holtmann cited Washington’s lack of preparation and effort as a reason for his lack of minutes.
Muhammad only played 18 minutes in that game.
Muhammad is averaging 6.5 points per game this season after averaging 7.6 per game last year as a freshman.
Washington has been one of the Buckeyes’ more effective scorers, averaging 10.7 points per game this season. He is one of the few players on the team who has been able to generate his own shot while also threatening with his perimeter game. A lack of consistent defensive effort, however, has been a point of contention for a while now.
Ohio State is currently riding a four-game losing streak which began December 29 against West Virginia. They have lost their last three Big Ten conference games, with the last two by 12 points each at Maryland and Indiana.
Without Muhammad and Washington, Holtmann is expected to start point guards CJ Walker and DJ Carton, which he hinted at on Monday.
As the Buckeyes’ starting point guard this season, Walker is averaging 7.2 points and 3.1 assists per game. Carton is third on the team, averaging 10.0 points per game.
Also expected to get more minutes against the Huskers is sophomore wing Justin Ahrens, who is averaging 2.5 points per game this season.
Nebraska is 7-9 overall and 2-3 in conference play.
The Buckeyes are 11-5 and 1-4 in the Big Ten.