Washington, DC---When the 2015-16 season got underway, few would have thought that the Howard University men's basketball team would be in its current predicament.  Over the past two weeks, the Bison have been beset with injuries or illness that have kept four of their starters and to four of their key reserves out of games.
           
Starters James "JT" Miller (fractured finger), Solomon "Solo" Mangham (ankle sprain/ stomach virus), Damon Collins (stomach virus) and now Marcel Boyd (fractured finger) along with Tyler Stone (ankle sprain), Oliver Ellison (injured knee) and Jalen Jones (stomach virus) have missed games.  Kofi Andoh, who replaced Miller in the starting lineup, suffered a broken nose in the Purdue game and has had to play with a mask.
           
All of this has forced head coach Kevin Nickelberry to shuffle his lineup and play with people out of position.
           
"We have had to make adjustments before due to injuries and illnesses, but in all my years of coaching, I have never experienced anything like this," said Nickelberry, in his sixth season at the helm.  It is unbelievable.  But it is like J Byrd says, someone has to step up"
           
James "J-Byrd" Daniel, III, the leading scorer in the nation at almost 30 points per game, has stepped up and then some despite playing with a sore toe that forced him to miss a game.  But it is the supporting cast that has limited what the team can do.
           
"We are now playing players who are in their first college basketball experience and not only that, they are playing new positions as we try to simplify the system," said Nickelberry, who has still miracously led his team to a 6-5 record.  "They are going to make mistakes as a result, but if they continue to play with energy and effort, we will have a chance."
           
Miller, who injured his finger in the Men Who Speak Up tournament in Las Vegas three weeks ago, is scheduled to return for the Cornell game on January 6 in Burr.  He averages 16 points per game and shoots over 50 percent from the field. Mangham, Collins, Stone, Jones and Andoh, who average 30 among them, should all be ready to go for today's game against UMBC at 4 pm.  The game will be streamed live on www.hubison.com.
           
But Nickelberry admits that he is most concerned about the loss of Boyd and Ellison, the team's only two centers.
           
"You just don't replace Marcel Boyd," he said flatly.  "He is the premier center in our league and a player who does a lot for us both on the defensive and offensive end.  And Oliver is our energy guy off the bench.  He is our only senior and has been through the wars.  We will just have to make sure that the people who replace them are prepared."
           
Stone, a 6-7, 200-pound junior, should get the nod at the position although he is a true power forward.  Cameron Lewis, a 6-8 freshman from Buffalo, NY, will likely to get some action as a backup after getting his first action in last Saturday's game vs Radford."
           
In the Retrievers (3-8), the Bison face a team that defeated Mount Saint Mary's in their last outing.  UMBC is coached by Aki Thomas, a former HU standout and assistant coach with the Bison.  It is to be noted that Frankie Allen, Thomas' coach at Howard, is now an assistant under Thomas.
           
UMBC defeated Howard 68-54 last year in Baltimore, but the Bison lead the series, 4-1.

NEXT UP: The Bison travel to Mount Pleasant, MI to take on Central Michigan on Tuesday, December 22 at 7 pm.  That game will be broadcast on ESPN3.