Juwan Howard took a swing he simply cannot take. It was unacceptable and irresponsible, and it will end up being a costly one.
Whatever precipitated Howard's behavior at the end of Michigan's 77-63 loss at Wisconsin on Sunday doesn't excuse it. His volatile temperament crossed a line, and it's up to Michigan and the Big Ten to redraw the boundary. Howard verbally sparred with Badgers coach Greg Gard in the postgame handshake line, then took exception when Gard grabbed his arm to stop him from walking past. In the ensuing chaos, Howard swung at Badgers assistant coach Joe Krabbenhoft's head. It escalated into an ugly melee involving players and coaches, and the ramifications should be significant.
Howard should be suspended for multiple games, at least. If Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren only has the authority to sideline him for two games, UM AD Warde Manuel will have to consider adding more. Manuel released a statement Sunday acknowledging Michigan's culpability for "the totally unacceptable behavior." He said he apologized to Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh, and added that Michigan interim President Mary Sue Coleman had reached out to Wisconsin Chancellor Rebecca Blank.
When the presidents are involved, you can expect severe repercussions. And there should be. Manuel said he'll work with the Big Ten to review it, and I imagine it will be resolved quickly. No, this doesn't have to wreck Howard's career. If he learns from it, it won't. It certainly could wreck Michigan's season.
The trickle-down damages might be crushing, with Michigan (14-11, 8-7 Big Ten) struggling to stay in NCAA Tournament contention. Players were seen throwing punches in the skirmish, notably Michigan's Moussa Diabate and Terrance Williams II, and they should be punished, too. If examination of the tape finds Wisconsin players engaged in the same behavior, they're also culpable.
Competitive passion is one thing, and Howard has used it to win a lot of games in his basketball career, as a player and coach (56-28 in his third season at UM with one Big Ten title). But when it rises to out-of-control anger, it has to stop. Howard was involved in a similar incident in the Big Ten tournament last year, when he yelled and gestured at Maryland coach Mark Turgeon during a timeout midway through the second half. Howard was ejected and later apologized.
More recently, he received technical fouls in consecutive games against Ohio State and Iowa.
The latest incident began to brew in the final minute against Wisconsin, when Howard clearly was miffed that Gard took two timeouts with a sizable lead. The last came with 15 seconds left, and Gard later explained he did it to avoid a 10-second violation with his backups in. Michigan had two starters still in the game and had not backed off defensively.
After the final whistle, Howard tried to walk past Gard in the handshake line, but Gard stepped in front and put a hand on him. Howard then pointed a finger in Gard's face. As assistants and players rushed in, Howard reached over and delivered an open-handed swing to the side of Krabbenhoft's head.
Notably, Howard did not apologize for his role in the fracas. Again, being unsportsmanlike in the heat of a moment can happen. Getting physical and sparking a nasty fracas is indefensible, and also selfish.
It was the worst possible reaction, and it came at the worst possible time for the Wolverines. They play Rutgers, Illinois and Michigan State in the next 10 days with only five games left in the regular season.
"I didn't like the timeout being called, I'll be totally honest with you," Howard said. "I thought it was not necessary at that moment, especially being a large lead. I felt that wasn't fair to our guys. ... I addressed the head coach that I will remember that because of that timeout. Then someone touched me, and I think that was very uncalled for, as we were verbalizing and communicating with one another. At that point, I thought it was time to protect myself."
That's also the reasoning Howard used to explain why he was so angry with Turgeon, that he was defending himself. Was Gard's hand on Howard an act of aggression that required defending? Not in the physical sense. But Howard frequently references his tough upbringing in Chicago, and often is compelled to defend himself when he perceives an act of disrespect.
I won't pretend to know how Howard's life experiences make him react in certain situations. He's a proud, strong-willed leader who rarely backs down, on the floor or off. But in both incidents with opposing coaches, the rage was sudden and startling, and players and assistants had to hold Howard back. That's dangerous, and there cannot be a third time.
Gard sounded perplexed and said he only stopped Howard to explain why he took the timeouts.
"Apparently, he didn't like that I called a timeout to reset the 10-second call because we only had four seconds to get the ball over halfcourt," Gard said. "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."
The tape shows plenty, although you never know what's said and what can't be seen. The tape shows enough to know Howard's actions caused the escalation, which trumps any explanation. It cost Howard a chunk of his reputation, surely will cost him a chunk of the season, and might cost the Wolverines a shot at the postseason.
Emotions and histrionics are part of college basketball, where coaches are sideline stars. The job requires enormous responsibility and steady leadership. Juwan Howard needs to be reminded of that with the strongest message possible.
