Wisconsin basketball coach Greg Gard was fined $10,000 by the Big Ten, but he doesn’t have to worry about paying it out of his own pocket. The athletic department will pick up the tab, according to a statement from Wisconsin Director of Athletics Chris McIntosh.

While the B1G statement said Gard “was in violation of the conference’s sportsmanship policy,” McIntosh pushed back:

Neither Coach Gard nor his staff had any intent to provoke or incite any of what took place. I want to commend those on our staff — and student-athletes — who trying to de-escalate the situation.

Our staff has my complete support, as do our student-athletes. I consider the $10,000 fine from the Big Ten to be a “Wisconsin fine” and not a “Greg Gard fine.” Wisconsin Athletics will assume the responsibility for paying the fine.

McIntosh joined the UW basketball postgame press conference Sunday to call on the Big Ten to act “swiftly and aggressively” after the heated exchange between Gard and Michigan coach Juwan Howard escalated into a postgame scuffle.