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As intriguing as Michigan basketball’s ability to rally back from being down 12 to win by 13 against Maryland, that’s not what anyone is talking about in the aftermath of the Wolverines’ victory over the Terps in the Big Ten Tournament.
All anyone wants to know is: What happened that caused Juwan Howard to get so heated which resulted in him getting ejected from the game?
Usually, Howard is relatively even-keeled, mild-mannered and with a very dignified demeanor. However, whatever transpired forced Michigan’s assistant coaches and senior captain Isaiah Livers to intervene, as Howard advanced to midcourt and appeared ready to fight.
According to Howard, he was ready to fight, actually. He shared his side of the story after the game.
“OK. I have respect for everyone’s time and also during this situation. I’m just gonna say it one time, so please, write your notes. After this, let’s talk about basketball,” Howard said. “At the end of the day, first, I want to apologize to my team, which I did in the locker room for my actions. That’s not the way how you handle situations like that under adverse moments. You can’t let your emotions get the best of you.
“I love the fact of how our guys stepped up and supported their coach, because they know I always want to support them. But I always want to take ownership when I’m wrong and admit when I’m wrong. So that’s not the right way to handle that situation.
“Now, my version, because there’s always gonna be so many versions. My version, this version — but at the end of the day, my version, I’ll tell you the truth of how it all happened. I noticed that Smith went for the offensive rebound and it went off his hands last, but the referees called the ball out of bounds and I think it was their possession.
“I’m like ‘no,’ that’s not how I saw it. So I was out of the coaching box. And I went down to explain that it was (not) off of Smith. It’s tough to communicate when it’s loud and also when you have your mask on. So (Maryland head coach Mark Turgeon) saw that I was out of the box. He told the referee to look at my feet. I’m out of the box, and I was like, ‘C’mon man, that’s what we’re worried about? My feet being out of the box?’ So he said to me, ‘Juwan, I’m not gonna let you talk to me. I’m never gonna let you talk to me ever again,’ and then he charged at me!
“And that right there — I don’t know how you guys was raised, but how I was raised by my grandmother and also by Chicago, because I was raised by Chicago and I grew up on the South Side — when guys charge you, it’s time to defend yourself. Especially when a grown man charges you. And that right there, I went into defense mode, forgetting exactly where I’m at.
“Because that’s not the right way to handle a situation, when you come in and charge someone. I didn’t charge him, so when he charged me, I reacted, and I reacted out of defense. So, that’s it, my version of things. And then, I got tossed.
“That’s the story. Like I said, you’re gonna hear his side. You’re gonna hear my side. You guys can write the narrative. But that’s all I have to say about that.”
To some degree, Turgeon confirmed part of Howard’s story, as he said in his postgame press conference that he told Howard, “Don’t talk to me.”
What do you think happened? Judge for yourself from the video of the skirmish during the TV timeout.
Juwan Howard was ejected during the last timeout.
Here's a look at what transpired: pic.twitter.com/rd5T99zAtC
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 12, 2021
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