P.J. Tucker, Dennis Schroder Ejected After Thunder vs Rockets Game 5 Altercation

Ashley Landis/Associated Press

Houston Rockets forward P.J. Tucker and Oklahoma City Thunder guard Dennis Schroder were both ejected during the third quarter of Game 5 on Saturday after a midcourt confrontation.

Tucker set a hard screen on Schroder near the three-point line, causing both to fall to the floor and leading Tucker to get in Schroder's face afterward. Officials immediately jumped in and tossed the two from the game.

The Rockets led 67-49 with 6:51 left in the third quarter at the time of the incident.

The Rockets would go on to outscore the Thunder 37-18 in the third quarter before winning 114-80 to grab a 3-2 series lead.

After the game, ESPN's Tim MacMahon reported the incident was fueled by lingering anger over the NBA's decision not to investigate Chris Paul's low hit on Ben McLemore in Game 3.

Schroder was in the middle of one of his stronger performances with 19 points on 6-of-13 shooting with one rebound and one assist. Tucker, meanwhile, notched five points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals in 21 minutes.

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The ejections should hurt the Rockets more than the Thunder with Tucker serving as the main power forward in head coach Mike D'Antoni's small-ball scheme. Robert Covington, Jeff Green and Danuel House Jr. will likely see an increase in minutes with Tucker out of the game.

Schroder, meanwhile, is likely to see his minutes spread across Chris Paul, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luguentz Dort.