Temple University yesterday suspended basketball coach John Chaney for one game after he threatened Massachusetts Coach John Calipari in a profanity-laced tirade on Sunday.
"I'll kill your {expletive} ass. You remember that," Chaney shouted after the Minutemen's 56-55 victory over Temple in Amherst, Mass. "I'll kick your ass. Kick your ass."
Calipari was conducting a postgame news conference when Chaney entered the interview room and began shouting. Eventually, he walked toward the lectern from which Calipari was speaking. Three Massachusetts players moved quickly to intervene and Chaney was restrained before reaching Calipari.
Chaney accused Calipari of intimidating the referees. Calipari, in fact, criticized them after the game.
"You've got a good team and you don't need that edge," Chaney yelled during the incident, according to a transcript. "That's why I told my kid to knock your {expletive} kid in the mouth" in a late-game elbowing incident.
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Today Chaney issued an apology through the Temple sports information office "to everyone" for what he termed an "unfortunate incident."
He will miss Wednesday night's Atlantic 10 Conference game at St. Bonaventure; assistant coach Jim Maloney likely will coach the Owls in Chaney's absence.
U-Mass. Athletic Director Bob Marcum complimented Temple for "issuing a suspension and a justified one. But, at the same time, I'm disappointed that Coach Chaney did not apologize directly to Coach Calipari because his remarks were directed at Coach Calipari. So, therefore, I think his apology should follow the same. His apology is no more than just a generic one."
Marcum said the lack of a direct apology to Calipari "could have an effect" on the safety of his team at the Feb. 24 rematch in Philadelphia. Under conference rules, U-Mass. could ask the conference to impose a stiffer penalty on Chaney or demand a public apology directly to Calipari, which could diffuse a potentially volatile situation."
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Calipari, in Philadelphia for tonight's game against St. Joseph's, did not return messages left at his hotel.
An Atlantic 10 spokesman acknowledged Temple's action, but said the conference, which never has suspended a coach, would have no further comment last night "as we still are reviewing the situation."
Chaney and Calipari are the conference's most successful coaches and their teams are among the best in the nation; Temple was ranked eighth and Massachusetts 13th going into Sunday's game and currently are 13th and 10th, respectively.
Sunday's incident was at least the fourth run-in in recent years between Chaney and an opposing league coach -- and the second with Calipari -- but the first that occurred off the court. In announcing the suspension, Temple President Peter J. Liacouras took note of the circumstances.
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"Coach Chaney should steer clear of these emotional encounters after such an emotional game. No basketball game is a matter of life and death," Liacouras said in a statement. "No matter what the verbal provocations ... Coach Chaney overstepped the line this time."
"An apology, especially on St. Valentine's Day, would be sufficient to settle a matter stemming from the heat of battle. But I believe the University must pursue the highest standard in competition, and even his sincere apology, he agrees, is insufficient in these circumstances."
The incident Sunday started after Calipari was seen giving game officials an earful in the hallway after the game. And that was the apparent catalyst for Chaney's actions. "You've got a good club, but what you did with the officials out there is wrong. I won't be a party to it," Chaney said.
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Calipari replied: "You weren't out there, Coach. You don't have any idea."
"You don't say {expletive} to officials without me being involved in it. You got a game that was given to you by the officials right here with {George Washington} on three bad calls. Okay? ... You had the best officiating you could ever get here. And for you to ride them, I won't be a part of that. I just got my ass blasted for giving {referees} hell down in West Virginia. And here you did a hell of a job riding them today. Good job! Three class guys and you pick them out here and single them out."
"Hey, Coach, Coach, I'm going to tell you something," Calipari replied.
That's when Chaney interrupted and told Calipari, "Shut up, God-dammit."
They previously had an on-court incident during a 1990 game, with Chaney shoving Calipari at midcourt and subsequently receiving a public reprimand. He also grabbed then-George Washington coach Gerry Gimelstob during a 1984 game; he issued an apology and the league took no action. Last week, he got into a shouting match with West Virginia Coach Gale Catlett during the Owls' 78-71 overtime loss in Morgantown, W.Va.
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