Miami RedHawks' Travis Steele Fined for Shoving Speaker in Viral Video, HC Apologizes to DJ

The Miami Redhawks men's basketball team improved to 29-0 with Friday's win over Western Michigan, but it was a costly victory for head coach Travis Steele.

The MAC announced Monday it fined Steele $2,500 "for halftime conduct during the Redhawks' game at Western Michigan on Friday, February 27. The conduct violated the MAC sportsmanship policy. Steele will also reimburse for damages to equipment that may have occurred during this incident."

Steele was not happy with the officiating at halftime when Miami entered the locker room trailing 30-26 and yelled and pointed at the referees as he was walking off the court.

Things escalated from there, and the head coach shoved over a speaker as he went to the locker room.

ESPN's Myron Medcalf reported Steele called DJ Charles Welch to apologize after pushing over his speaker.

"The speaker busted," Welch said. "Then I later found out the booth output on the back was damaged. Turntables and speakers. Taxes and shipping and you're almost at $3,000 in damage. ... He was heated that his team was losing at halftime. It's sports. We know how it gets."

It was a move that cost Steele some money, but the Redhawks looked much better in the second half and came back to win 69-67 thanks to Trey Perry's buzzer beater.

While it was a close call for the Redhawks, it maintained their undefeated record heading into March. They are the only men's basketball team without a loss this season and will have a chance to secure their spot in the NCAA tournament if they win the MAC tournament.

Yet one of the biggest questions surrounding the sport at this point is whether they will earn an at-large bid if they do not win their conference tournament.

Former Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl made the case that other teams with more difficult schedules are more deserving, including the Tigers, which drew quite the response from Miami athletic director David Sayler:

As long as Miami takes care of business in the conference tournament, it won't have to worry about being on the bubble.

Still, that will only dial up the pressure for Steele and Co. down the stretch after a close and emotional win over Western Michigan.