The Mountain West Conference concluded Monday that the fracas following Saturday's Utah State vs. Nevada game came as a result of "inappropriate conduct" in the handshake line and in the locker room areas, not the postgame court rush.
Nevada forward Jordan Caroline punched a glass fire extinguisher case outside the locker rooms after Utah State upset the No. 12 Wolf Pack 81-76, and several Nevada staff members were seen on video yelling at security and police officers.
"After a thorough investigation into the circumstances of Saturday night's incident, which included a review of numerous video clips from various sources and the collection of written statements from multiple individuals, the Mountain West has concluded the situation was not caused by the court rush," the league's statement read. "There was a postgame management plan in place and it was executed successfully.
"Rather, inappropriate conduct by individuals from both programs in the postgame handshake line and subsequently in the locker room areas created the unfortunate circumstances. The Conference has had multiple communications with both athletics directors and has shared the findings of its review. Each institution will be responsible for the determination and administration of what it deems appropriate disciplinary action for those involved. It must be made clear unsportsmanlike and unprofessional conduct is not acceptable and will not be tolerated."
Utah State athletic director John Hartwell called his staff members' behavior "unacceptable" but said any discipline would be handled internally.
"First of all, we want to thank both the Mountain West and the University of Nevada in helping us review the postgame incident from Saturday night," Hartwell said in a statement. "While unfortunate, it should not overshadow what was a great college basketball game between two NCAA Tournament-caliber teams. After reviewing all the evidence, from surveillance video to eyewitness accounts, the incident was not a game management issue and was not caused by our students rushing the court. The unsportsmanlike behavior following the game did not include any of our student-athletes, but rather a couple of staff members, which is unacceptable, and we will handle those issues internally. Moving forward, Utah State Athletics will review our game management procedures in an effort to continually learn and improve."
Nevada head coach Eric Musselman sent out a pair of tweets regarding Caroline, who practiced on Monday and is questionable for Tuesday's game at Air Force, sources told ESPN.
"As someone who's had the honor to know and coach Jordan Caroline for four years, I can testify to his outstanding character, high moral standards and strong integrity. He's kind, compassionate, and competitive," Musselman tweeted. "Basketball aside, we're fortunate to have such an upstanding young man as a part of the Wolf Pack family."