MADISON, Wis. – It’s evident that somebody at the Big Ten offices had a sense of humor or a storyline to sell.

After the national firestorm and debate that erupted the last time Wisconsin and Michigan played, it seemed apropos that the first meeting between the two schools this season would come today … on Valentine’s Day.

Wisconsin coach Greg Gard typically likes the attention and the focus on the players and less on himself, but it was obvious he was expecting questions Monday regarding the handshake line scuffle that broke out almost a year ago.

For starters, it’s a big game for two teams squarely on the periphery of the NCAA Tournament. The Badgers (14-10, 6-8 Big Ten) have lost eight of 11 and sit alone in 10th place. The Wolverines (14-11, 8-6) have yet to win more than three in a row all season and are in a five-way tie for fifth, a template of mediocrity highlighted by eight losses in games decided by six points or less.

But the conversation around the game will involve Howard and Gard’s postgame confrontation that led to players throwing punches, Howard striking assistant coach Joe Krabbenhoft in the face, and both coaches being disciplined by the league.

"That's all behind us," Gard said Monday, a comment later echoed by Krabbenhoft.

"It's just another moment in the history of the Kohl Center," Krabbenhoft said. "I'm not going to shy away from it, but I understand that's in the past. My emphasis has got to continue to be on helping this team."

To recap, Howard was upset that Wisconsin called a timeout in the closing seconds of its 77-63 victory last February. Michigan was pressing UW’s reserves and Gard said he called the timeout to reset the 10-second clock and organize his players.

After the game, Howard pulled his mask down and told Gard, “I won’t forget that,” referring to the timeout he thought was inappropriate, and attempted to keep moving down the line. Gard proceeded to grab Howard’s elbow to try and explain his reasoning, which angered him as he pointed his finger at Gard.

A heated discussion ensued that evolved into a skirmish after Howard reached through a crowd and struck Krabbenhoft in the face and caused punches to be thrown by players on both teams.

Howard was suspended for the remainder of the regular season (five games) and three players, two from Michigan and one from Wisconsin, also were suspended by the Big Ten. Gard had to pay a $10,000 fine but UW athletic director Chris McIntosh said the school would pay it in a show of support for Gard.

Gard called the incident “water under the bridge” during October’s Big Ten Media Day. The two coaches also crossed paths over the summer on the recruiting trail when the dialogue began.

“We’re all competitors in this,” Gard said. “You’re not in this if you’re not. If you don’t have some competitive juices in you, you’re not going to last very long in this. He’s obviously a tremendous competitor, was as a player and obviously is as a coach.

“It was unfortunate for everybody that occurred last year, and that’s behind us. I have no problem with Juwan. I respect him.”

The path forward is less certain for his players. Brutally honest with his players following Saturday’s 73-63 overtime defeat at Nebraska, a game in which UW led by 17 points early in the second half, Gard said UW “got what it deserved” after scoring on only eight of its final 38 possessions, saw its defensive effort become muddled between screens and losing shooters, and a penchant for fouling that included three on one second-half possession.

The five-minute overtime was a collision of mistakes: Nebraska scoring at will at the rim and UW either being careless with the ball or quick-shot three-pointers. The result was the Huskers finishing the game on a 12-0 run, UW missing its final six shots and committing three of 11 turnovers in the final 4:09.

Gard was adamant that he still has confidence in the group, which practiced “really well” Sunday, but drove home the point was the Badgers can’t keep Jekyll and Hyde-ing themselves and expect to be successful.

“We got to play better basketball, better than the last 15 minutes (at Nebraska),” Gard said. “I thought the first 25 were pretty good. The last 15 were polar opposites.

“In a true basketball sense, as a coach, looking back at 30 years of experience, you always wonder why one team does ‘A’ so well and then turns around and doesn’t. I think some of it is experience. I still have to stop my own self and remind me the age of the guys I’ve got in different positions. Even though they’ve been here for a little bit, (they) don’t have a tremendous amount of experience being the guy or a group of the primary guys. That’s part of it. That’s not the whole thing.

“We just have to continue to be more solid in the areas that make us good … You’re always trying to understand just be solid. We don’t have to make super-human plays. This group, hopefully through experience, figure out when one or two things go wrong, you can’t turn that into a dozen things that went wrong, and it starts snowballing on itself.”

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