Wisconsin director of athletics Chris McIntosh released a statement following the announcement that Michigan coach Juwan Howard was suspended for the final five games of the regular season. Wisconsin coach Greg Gard was dealt a $10,000 fine for his role in the altercation that occurred after Sunday’s game between the two teams.
“Needless to say, there is no place in college athletics for what happened at the end of Sunday's game,” McIntosh said in the release. “Neither coach Gard nor his staff had any intent to provoke or incite any of what took place. I want to commend those on our staff — and student-athletes — who were trying to de-escalate the situation.”
McIntosh went on to say that Wisconsin will pay the $10,000 fine, not Gard. The whole altercation started during the handshake line when the two coaches exchanged words after Wisconsin's 77–63 win. Gard could be seen grabbing Howard by the shirt and Howard appeared to poke Gard in the chest. An ugly scene ensued where Howard took a swing at Wisconsin assistant coach Joe Krabbenhoft.
After the game, Howard said he took issue with Gard calling a timeout in the game's final seconds with a large lead and that he was defending himself when a coach put their hands on him. Gard explained that he called the timeout in order to reset the clock so that his bench players could get the ball across half court. Howard apologized for his role in the incident after the punishment was announced.
Howard was also fined $40,000 and Michigan forwards Terrance Williams II and Moussa Diabate were suspended one game. Badgers guard Jahcobi Neath was also suspended one game.
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For more Michigan news, head over to Wolverine Digest.
