Montgomery rebuked for shoving player
California coach Mike Montgomery was reprimanded by the Pac-12 on Monday for shoving one of his own players in the chest during a game.
The conference did not announce the specific punishment Montgomery received for his actions Sunday, although he will not be suspended.
“While emotions can run high in competitive environments, Pac-12 coaches are expected to conduct themselves in a manner that will reflect credit on the institution and the conference,” commissioner Larry Scott said in a statement. “Each Pac-12 coach must be aware that they are an example to student-athletes and other students, and consistent with this influence and visibility, must meet a particularly high standard.”
The confrontation happened during a timeout early in the second half of Cal’s 76-68 win over Southern California when Montgomery yelled at star guard Allen Crabbe for nonchalant play and then shoved him in the chest with both hands.
Montgomery downplayed the run-in after the game but later issued an apology through the school. On Monday, he acknowledged he went too far trying to get his star player out of a funk.
“I made a mistake,” he said in an interview with Pac-12 Networks. “There’s no question about that. Allen is so important to us. There’s a lot of pressure on Allen. He’s got to perform for us. …
“Sometimes he tends to take himself out a little bit. Yet for us, he’s our leader. We can’t play if Allen is not engaged. To his credit, he generally has been, but in this particular game, I thought he was a little bit out of it.”
Crabbe had to be restrained by teammates and briefly left the court before returning and leading a comeback win by the Golden Bears (16-9, 8-5 Pac-12).
Crabbe said after the game that emotions were high at the time and Montgomery was just trying to motivate him.
“Everything’s fine,” Crabbe said. “It’s under the bridge. He’s my coach, no hard feelings.”
■ DUKE — Former Blue Devils star Phil Henderson, 44, has died at his home in the Philippines, the school announced. Coach Mike Krzyzewski said Henderson’s mother told him her son died Sunday. No cause of death was given.
Henderson was a senior captain and the leading scorer on the 1989-90 Duke team that lost to UNLV in the NCAA championship game. He averaged 18.5 points that season and scored 22.3 points in tournament play that postseason.
■ AP POLL — Indiana held on to the No. 1 spot in The Associated Press poll for the third straight week. The Hoosiers received 43 first-place votes from the 65-member national media panel.
Miami had 20 No. 1 votes and moved up one spot to second. Gonzaga, with the other two first-place votes, climbed two spots to third. Michigan State rose from eighth to No. 4 and was followed by Florida, Duke, Michigan, Syracuse, Kansas and Louisville.
■ NORTH CAROLINA STATE — Former Wolfpack coach Sidney Lowe, now a Utah Jazz assistant, was arrested and charged with failing to file North Carolina state income taxes for three years. Lowe didn’t file returns in 2009, 2010 and 2011, the last three years he coached the Wolfpack.
■ SOUTHERN UTAH — Former Silverado High School player Wade Collie was arrested on drug charges. The Iron County, Utah, Sheriff’s Office’s website shows Collie, 21, was arrested shortly after midnight Sunday on charges of possession of drug paraphernalia and felony possession with intent to distribute.
The 6-foot-6-inch forward was booked into Iron County Jail. He posted $10,000 bail Sunday. The university issued a statement saying Collie was suspended indefinitely from the team.