Wisconsin beat Michigan in a heated game that ended with more drama than buckets. Up 15 with 15 seconds left, Wisconsin called a timeout while trying to break Michigan’s full-court pressure. Michigan coach Juwan Howard didn’t like it, feeling it was unnecessary with the game basically over. Wisconsin coach Greg Gard explained he wanted to avoid a 10-second violation and give his backups a chance to properly run the press break. Howard still wasn’t happy.
Tension carried into the postgame handshake line. Howard didn’t want to talk, but Gard appeared to try to chat or explain. That led to Howard hitting an opposing coach in the head with an odd open-hand move that looked part slap, part squeeze. Chaos followed. Players and staff got involved. One guy’s bald head popped up into someone’s arms, got grabbed and thrown down. Michigan players held Howard back while Wisconsin staff tried to de-escalate. A few fans chanted “anarchy,” and eventually both sides scattered.
Howard later tried to defend his actions, saying he felt the need to protect himself after being touched during the handshake. Video showed that Gard may have put a hand on his elbow to stop him, but nothing aggressive. Howard’s response didn’t help his case. He was suspended for the rest of the regular season. The messy ending overshadowed everything else and made both teams look bad, but especially Michigan’s head coach.