Ben Mathurin hit De’Andre Hunter in the lane, which led to an altercation and his ejection early in Game 4 on Sunday night. (Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin was ejected in the first quarter of their Game 4 matchup with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night after he sparked an altercation with De’Andre Hunter.
Late in the first quarter, with the Pacers up to a dominant 22-10 start to the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Mathurin was seen hitting Hunter in the chest — which caused Hunter to double over briefly in the lane.
Mathurin immediately walked backward up toward the 3-point line, and Hunter followed. While Mathurin appeared to taunt Hunter a bit with his arms outstretched, Hunter shoved Mathurin hard in the chest and knocked him to the court. That sparked a pretty big altercation, and a long review from the officials after things settled.
Eventually, Mathurin was hit with a Flagrant 2 foul and was ejected. Hunter, though his shove was far worse than Mathurin’s initial action, was only hit with a technical foul for his retaliatory action. Myles Turner was also assessed a technical foul.
This post will be updated with more information shortly.