Tyler Herro and Amen Thompson sparked a scuffle in Sunday’s game between the Miami Heat and Houston Rockets. Terry Rozier aided his teammate, which further escalated the fight, leading to a total of six ejections. Rozier made his feelings clear about Herro after the game, reacting to the viral incident.
Speaking to reporters following Miami’s 104-100 win in Houston, Herro explained why he jumped into Thompson after he went to the floor. He was defending his teammate, who had been pulled down with 35 seconds left in the game.
“We gotta protect all our guys, but definitely Tyler at all costs,” Rozier said, according to 5 Reason Sports’ Brady Hawk. “I got a lot of love for Tyler, just a great dude. We gotta protect him. It’s natural instincts.”
Tyler Herro and Terry Rozier were ejected for their roles in the fight, while Amen Thompson, Jalen Green, coach Ime Udoka and assistant coach Ben Golliver were thrown out for the Houston Rockets.
Tempers had already been flaring after Fred VanVleet was ejected for bumping into referee Marc Davis. Things escalated further when Herro and Thompson got into it, while Rozier, Green and other players on the court tried to break it up.
It will be interesting to see how the NBA handles the punishment for the players and coaches involved. There will likely be fines, though suspensions are expected to be less severe than those handed out in the Dallas Mavericks-Phoenix Suns fight last Friday.
In that incident, the league suspended Naji Marshall for four games, Jusuf Nurkic for three games and PJ Washington for one game. Nurkic instigated the fight by open-hand slapping Marshall, who threw a punch in retaliation. Washington pushed off Nurkic, causing him to lose his balance.
Tyler Herro comments on his scuffle with Amen Thompson
Reporters caught up with Tyler Herro in the locker room after the game, asking the Miami Heat star about his thoughts on his fight with Amen Thompson. Herro explained that it was just two competitive players going at it before taking a shot at the Houston Rockets sophomore.
“Just two competitors going at it, playing basketball,” Herro said, according to Bleacher Report. “… Just a physical game. Guess that’s what happens when someone’s scoring, throwing dimes, doing the whole thing. I’d get mad too.”
The two teams are set to meet again on March 21, this time in South Beach at the Kaseya Center. The Rockets have now lost nine straight games to the Heat. Their last win against the Heat was on Nov. 27, 2019, while their last win in Miami was on Feb. 7, 2018.
