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California coach Mike Montgomery shoves star guard Allen Crabbe during timeout

California coach Mike Montgomery had a heated exchange with star guard Allen Crabbe during Sunday's 76-68 victory over USC.

During a timeout called by Montgomery in the second half, the Bears coach shoved Crabbe in the chest as the team entered the huddle. Crabbe, the leading scorer in the Pac-12, didn't take kindly to the shove and began making his way to the team's locker room, but he returned to the court before the end of the timeout.

Crabbe returned in a big way, scoring 10 points in the final five minutes as the Bears closed the game on a 25-7 run. Crabbe finished with game-high 23 points with 10 rebounds.

After the game, Montgomery admitted to shoving Crabbe, telling reporters that he was trying to motivate his star player.

"Nobody was ready to play," Montgomery said, according to Scout.com's Ryan Gorcey. "We were just standing. I was trying to get him going. Probably over-exaggerated it."

Crabbe also downplayed the heated moment.

"It was coach's way of motivating me," Crabbe said about the shove. "Everything's fine. It's under the bridge. No hard feelings."

Crabbe is averaging 19.6 points per game for the Bears this season.