MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Michigan coach Juwan Howard hit Wisconsin assistant Joe Krabbenhoft after arguing with Wisconsin coach Greg Gard during the handshake line following the Badgers’ 77-63 victory.
The Big Ten says it plans to “take swift and appropriate disciplinary action when it completes its review.” During his postgame news conference, Howard said he didn’t like Wisconsin calling for a timeout with 15 seconds left and the Badgers leading by 15.
After the game, Howard pointed a finger at Gard. Later on, Howard reached through a crowd to get to Krabbenhoft, and players from each side got involved in the skirmish.
Wisconsin coach Greg Gard and Michigan coach Juwan Howard confronted each other after their game.
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 20, 2022
A brawl broke out and a Badgers assistant coach was struck in the face. pic.twitter.com/5Q8gQxgASz
“I didn’t like the timeout they called, and I’m being totally honest with you,” Howard told ESPN. “I thought it was not necessary at that moment, especially with it being a large lead. … I thought that wasn’t fair to our guys. And so that’s what happened”
According to ESPN, Howard said his reaction stemmed from someone on Wisconsin putting hands on him, though he did not say who that was.
"Someone touched me, and I think it was very uncalled for, for them to touch me, as we were verbalizing and communicating with one another. That's what escalated it," he told ESPN.
ESPN stated that Gard explained his reasoning for the timeouts, particularly the one with 15 seconds left.
"Apparently he didn't like that I called the timeout to reset the 10-second call. Because we only had four seconds to get the ball over half court," Gard told CBS. "I didn't want to put my backups -- I had all my bench guys in the game -- I didn't want to put them in that position of scrambling with only four seconds. So I took a timeout and got us a new 10 seconds and it helped them get organized and get the ball in. And he did not like that when he came through the handshake line. I'll leave it at that and the tape will show the rest."
According to ESPN, Howard was ejected at last year’s Big Ten tournament at Michigan in 2019 after getting into a shouting match with Maryland coach Mark Turgeon.
The Big Ten has not yet made any decisions regarding the disciplinary measures that will be taken.
