A heated altercation marred the Oklahoma City Thunder's 146-132 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday night, as a third-quarter scuffle nearly escalated into a full-blown fight. The clash involved multiple players from both teams, resulting in the ejection of Kenrich Williams, Julian Champagnie, and Lu Dort. The incident occurred with three minutes remaining in the third quarter at the Paycom Center.
The tensions began when Kenrich Williams received an elbow to the jaw from Julian Champagnie while attempting to pass to Stephon Castle. Shortly after, Jeremy Sochan grabbed a rebound and was fouled by Lu Dort, leading to a confrontation between the two. The situation quickly escalated, involving over ten players, including Castle, De'Aaron Fox, Keldon Johnson, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cason Wallace, and Aaron Wiggins.
Officials issued double-technical fouls to Kenrich Williams and Julian Champagnie, as well as to Jeremy Sochan and Lu Dort. Following the review by NBA official James Williams, Kenrich Williams, Champagnie, and Lu Dort were ejected from the game.
"Under review for an altercation that does not dissolve." – James Williams
The ejections had different impacts on each player’s performance. Kenrich Williams left the game scoreless after spending 10 minutes on the floor. Meanwhile, Lu Dort contributed significantly to Oklahoma City's win with 9 points, 9 rebounds, and a steal. Julian Champagnie added 8 points on an efficient 3-of-4 shooting before his exit.
Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault expressed concerns over the consequences of lost poise during games.
"We have to have better poise. We don't want to lose rotation players in big games as a result of that." – Mark Daigneault
Daigneault also commented on the ejection of Lu Dort, suggesting that if the league maintains a zero-tolerance policy for certain behaviors, it should be uniformly applied.
"We have not been a team that's retaliated very much." – Mark Daigneault
Jeremy Sochan stated that Dort's ejection was due to "some rude words" he exchanged during the scuffle, which was corroborated by coach Daigneault. Despite these disruptions, the Thunder's victory marked their third consecutive win, a testament to their resilience and focus.
"It made us refocus, figure out what's important." – Jalen Williams
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