by Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz, USA TODAY Sports

With Cal trailing USC in the second half Sunday night, Mike Montgomery wanted to send his leading scorer a message.

But Montgomery’s decision to shove guard Allen Crabbe during a timeout was one that startled many observers.

As Crabbe headed toward the Bears’ huddle with 16:31 remaining in the second half, Montgomery yelled at his star player and then pushed him square in the chest with both hands. Junior forward Richard Solomon then grabs Crabbe by the collar of his jersey. The exchange was captured here by KEZI-TV sports reporter Stephen Nelson.

After being escorted into the tunnel by Solomon and guard Justin Cobbs, Crabbe returned to the Bears’ bench and shortly after re-entered the game. He scored 14 of his 23 points in the second half to lead Cal to a 76-68 win.

The Bears (16-9, 8-5 Pac-12) have won five of their past six games, two against ranked opponents, to nudge into the NCAA tournament picture.

“An emotional game was going on at the time and I guess he was just trying to motivate me,” Crabbe said of the incident, according to The Associated Press. “But everything’s fine. It’s under the bridge. He’s my coach, no hard feelings. We’re just going to keep moving on.”

Montgomery also brushed off the incident after the game.

“Worked, didn’t it?” Montgomery said, per The Associated Press. “Allen had come down twice went to the wrong side of the court and his guy shot two 3s. I was trying to get him going. Probably overdid it a little bit but Allen’s my guy. We can’t win if he is not ready to play.”

Cal or the Pacific-12 Conference could see the incident in different terms and elect to punish Montgomery for it. Earlier this season, Morehead State suspended coach Sean Woods for making contact with a player while berating him on the sidelines.

… [For more on Cal coach Mike Montgomery shoves Allen Crabbe, click here.]