Juwan Howard was heated when he joined the handshake line following the 77-63 loss to the Wisconsin Badgers Sunday afternoon. He said post-game, he didn’t like the timeouts called by Wisconsin Head Coach Greg Gard with less than a minute remaining, leading by double digits.
Related: Juwan Howard hits Wisconsin coach in head after Michigan basketball loss in Madison
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“I didn’t like the timeout they called, and I’m being totally honest with you,” Howard said. “I thought it was not necessary at the moment, especially with it being a large lead. I thought that wasn’t fair to our guys. That’s what happened.”
Howard said someone touched him and he did not appreciate it. “That is was escalated it,” he said. Gard told CBS on the court post-game a similar story.
“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,” he said. “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. He didn’t like that when he came through the handshake line. I’ll leave it at that and the tape with show the rest.”
An hour and half after the game ended, the Big Ten Conference responded with a statement:
“The Big Ten Conference is aware of a physical altercation involving Michigan Head Coach Juwan Howard at the conclusion of the Michigan Wolverines and Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball game. The conference is in contact with both member institutions and is currently assessing the incident. The conference will provide more information and will take swift and appropriate disciplinary action when it completes its review.”
We reached out the University of Michigan for comment and received a statement from Michigan Athletic Director Warde Manuel.
“I am aware of and watched the end of our men’s basketball game. There is no excuse for any of our staff or student-athletes to get into a physical altercation with others regardless of instigating factors. I reached out and apologized to Chris McIntosh and President Coleman has reached out to UW Chancellor Blank to apologize for the totally unacceptable behavior. We will review the situation more thoroughly and work with the Big Ten Conference as they determine their disciplinary actions and will determine if further disciplinary actions are warranted.”
The story has been trending on social media all day. Some calling for Howard’s firing. Others saying it deserves a suspension.
It’s sad thinking about what I watched in that handshake line as the coach of a gr8 Univ. ala UM could not control his temper & nearly set off a full blown riot. INEXCUSABLE behavior by Juwan Howard MUST LEAD TO SEVERE PUNISHMENT. UM President & AD should take ACTION NOW!
— Dick Vitale (@DickieV) February 20, 2022
Whatever happens to Juwan Howard, he deserves what he gets for that. But Gard instigated it all and deserves harsh punishment as well. Watch from the start. Howard just tries to ignore Gard and walk past him but Gard physically stops him — grabs him, gets in his face.
— John Kryk (@JohnKryk) February 20, 2022
The more I see the video, the more disturbing it is. This is why Woody Hayes was fired. Juwan Howard needs to be suspended for multiple games. As I mentioned, this is not the first time this has happened with him and another coach. Zero excuse.
— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) February 20, 2022