Michigan coach hits Badgers assistant after Wisconsin win
Michigan coach Juwan Howard became upset after Wisconsin called a pair of timeouts in the final minute of a game the Badgers already had put out of reach.
The way Howard responded could have major ramifications on the rest of Michigan’s season.
Howard took a swing at Wisconsin assistant Jon Krabbenhoft after arguing with Wisconsin coach Greg Gard during the handshake line following the Badgers’ 77-63 victory on Sunday.
During his postgame news conference, Howard said he was angry over Wisconsin’s timeout usage. The hosts called two timeouts in the last minute, including one with 15 seconds left when the Badgers led by 15.
“I didn’t like the timeout being called, to be totally honest,” Howard said. “I thought it was not necessary at the moment, especially being a large lead.”
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.
Replays appeared to show that Howard no longer had a closed fist and had his hand open by the time he hit Krabbenhoft on the top of his head. Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh said he already had contacted Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren about the situation, adding that Wisconsin had staff members who were “affected and injured.”
Johnny Davis scored 25 points for No. 15 Wisconsin (21-5, 12-4), which is battling No. 5 Purdue and No. 12 Illinois for the Big Ten title.
No. 8 Providence 71, Butler 70 OT: Jared Bynum made two free throws with 38 seconds left in overtime and visiting Providence rallied from a 19-point deficit.
Down 43-24 early in the second half and still trailing by seven points with 2 1/2 minutes left in regulation, the Friars (22-4, 12-2 Big East) pulled off the comeback.
Nate Watson scored 22 points and Noah Horchler had 15 points and 11 rebounds to help keep Providence atop the conference standings. Horchler’s basket with 23.4 seconds to go in the second half made it 64-all and forced the extra session.
Chuck Harris had 17 points and Aaron Thompson added 16 for Butler (13-15, 6-11), which has lost three in a row. The Bulldogs never trailed over the final 36 minutes of regulation, and Jayden Taylor missed an open 3-pointer at the end of OT.
No. 14 Houston 76, Wichita State 74 2OT: J’Wan Roberts’ dunk with 1.3 seconds remaining in double overtime gave visiting Houston a stirring victory.
It was Roberts’ only basked of the game and followed Wichita State’s Craig Porter hitting a tying 3-point shot with 5.4 seconds remaining in the second overtime. The Cougars took the inbounds and raced up the floor hitting Roberts for the uncontested game-winner.
Josh Carlton scored 11 of his 23 points in the two overtimes, finishing 9 of 14 from the floor for Houston (22-4, 11-2 American).
Jamal Shead scored 13 points for the Cougars while Kyler Edwards, Fabian White and Ramon Walker each added 11.