Lakers forward LeBron James was called for a flagrant foul 2 for his elbow that bloodied the face of Pistons forward Isaiah Stewart during the third quarter and was ejected from the game before Los Angeles rallied from 17 points down for a stirring 121-116 win over Detroit on Sunday night.
Stewart was ejected from the game for escalating things, as he kept running after James on the court, refusing to leave. Stewart was bleeding beneath his right eye after James’ elbow struck him.
Russell Westbrook was given a technical foul for his involvement in the wild scene that took place with 9 minutes and 18 seconds left in the third and the Lakers trailing 78-66.
James, in his second game back after missing eight because of an abdominal strain, left the Little Caesars Arena court with 10 points and five assists.
James declined to speak to the media after the game.
Anthony Davis was a force for the Lakers with 30 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and five blocked shots, carrying a big load to help them break a three-game losing streak. He had a big steal late in the game and made two free throws with 1.1 seconds left to seal the win.
Westbrook was also a force for the Lakers, just missing a triple-double with 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds.
Carmelo Anthony (18 points) and Dwight Howard (13 points, five rebounds) did their part to help the Lakers.
Going forward, the Lakers and Pistons will have to see if the NBA will suspend James and Stewart, respectively.
Stewart repeatedly went after James, unwilling to leave the court and doing all he could to get to the Lakers forward. Eventually Stewart was contained and pulled off the court by Detroit personnel.
Even then, the Lakers looked and pointed at the tunnel near their bench to make sure Stewart wasn’t coming back to try to get to James.
The referees walked toward the tunnel to make sure the situation was under control. It took about 10 minutes for things to be sorted out and for play to resume.
Things began to unravel when Jerami Grant was shooting two free throws while James and Stewart were side by side along the lane. James swung his left elbow and hit Stewart in the right eye.
James reached out for a moment to seemingly apologize, but Stewart already was irate at what happened.
After the referees reviewed what occurred and made their decisions, James was escorted to the Lakers’ locker room.
Talen Horton-Tucker — who finished with eight points, six rebounds and three assists — replaced James in the game.
The Lakers will meet the Pistons at Staples Center next Sunday.