It was an expensive temper tantrum for Travis Steele.
Steele has been fined by the Mid-American Conference and also will reimburse Western Michigan’s resident in-arena DJ for the damage done to a stand-up speaker by the head men’s basketball coach of Miami (Ohio) during halftime of Friday night’s game at University Arena in Kalamazoo.
Steele has been fined $2,500, the MAC announced this week, and he also agreed to pay for breaking DJ Chuck’s equipment, with the damages estimated to be about $3,000. Steele and DJ Chuck have spoken since the incident, and Steele apologized, Western Michigan athletic director Dan Bartholomae said.
Steele, whose Miami team is 30-0 and the only unbeaten team in Division I, avoided a suspension, with the end of the regular season and the MAC tournament looming.
“I’ve gotta be better at halftime, if I’m gonna be honest,” Steele said after the WMU game. “I can’t lose my mind.
“I’ve gotta be better.”
Steele was heated as the clock ran out on the first half, and he got into an animated exchanged with officials, who gave him a technical foul as he was walking the court and toward the visitor’s locker room. That set off Steele some more, and as he walked off the court, he shoved a large stand-up speaker to the ground.
Video of the incident quickly made the rounds on social media, drawing scorn from much of the college basketball world, and especially Western Michigan fans.
Campus police were in the arena, as is normal, and saw the incident, but there was no police report filed.
Miami, which trailed Western Michigan, 30-26, at halftime, came back to win, 69-67, on a last-second layup by freshman guard Trey Perry to stay perfect on the season. Miami, ranked No. 19 nationally, won another thriller Tuesday, 74-72, on Toledo to clinch the MAC championship.
Steele, 44, is in his fourth season as head coach at Miami, after a four-year run as head coach at Xavier. Steele is signed through 2032, with an annual salary that will pay him more than $500,000 at the end of his contract.
tpaul@detroitnews.com
@tonypaul1984
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Here’s how much outburst at WMU will cost Miami (Ohio) coach Travis Steele
Reporting by Tony Paul, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
