It’s always intriguing when coaches get fired up, and Bill Self and Shaka Smart provided such a moment during last night’s Maui Invitational semifinal.
Despite their history of coaching against each other, the two experienced a heated exchange during Marquette’s 71-59 victory over top-ranked Kansas on Tuesday.
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The tension escalated when Kansas’ Kevin McCullar made a three-pointer near the Marquette bench, engaging in some trash talk directed at Smart as he moved up the court. This led to a confrontation involving Smart, players from both teams, and exchanges of words between the two coaches after tempers settled.
Post-game, both coaches addressed the altercation, with Self’s response hinting at ongoing tension between them.
Smart commented on the incident, stating, “So Kevin McCullar is one of the best competitors I’ve coached against in a long time. He played at Texas Tech and he always has brought an edge that is different. He’s always enjoyed having a dialogue with me. He probably does that with all coaches. That kind of started the little dust-up. Their bench got involved. Our bench got involved. At the end of the day, it really had very little to do with the game.”
Self, however, dismissed Smart’s explanation, saying, “I doubt it was accurate, just so you know, and I don’t even care. I’m not going to talk about it, but I guarantee it wasn’t accurate.”
Looking ahead, Smart and the Golden Eagles will face Purdue in the Maui Invitational title game, scheduled for 5 p.m. ET today. Meanwhile, Self and the Jayhawks are set to meet Tennessee in the third-place game at 2:30 p.m.
