USC coach Eric Musselman apologizes for clash with treasure hunter: ‘Will learn from this’

USC men’s basketball coach Eric Musselman has issued an apology for the way he handled himself during a heated dispute with a treasure hunter over the weekend.

In a statement to The California Post, Musselman said he was sorry for his actions, writing, “I know the responsibilities that come with my role, and while I was trying to step in and support my coach, I definitely should have handled this situation better and will learn from this for the future.”

The incident occurred on Sunday morning, while Musselman and his Trojans team were taking photos underneath the pier in Manhattan Beach, Calif.

A detectorist, Gary from the popular YouTube channel “Gary’s Metal Detecting,” walked through the background of the shot, and one of Musselman’s staffers got into it with the treasure seeker after asking him to move.

After both parties exchanged words, Musselman stepped in and told Gary to “shut the f—k up.” He also called him a “f—king d—khead” and added, “Somebody should f—king drop your ass is what should happen.”

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The altercation was captured on video and obtained by The Post on Wednesday.

The incident came just hours before Chad Baker-Mazara, one of Musselman’s former players, filed a lawsuit against USC, alleging Musselman had gone off on him in a “racially-charged” rant following USC’s loss to Nebraska on Feb. 28.

Baker-Mazara claimed Musselman told him to “shut the f—k up!” before he said Baker-Mazara should “go back to the f—king Dominican Republic!”

Baker-Mazara was removed from the Trojans’ roster the day after the game.

In response to the suit, USC said in a statement on Monday that “the decision to remove the student-athlete from the men’s basketball roster was based on a number of considerations, none having to do with race. We look forward to defeating this action in court.”