Paul George scored 16 of his game-high 24 points in the final five minutes of the first half and the Oklahoma City Thunder rolled to a 121-96 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Monday night in a chippy game in which both teams were assessed technical fouls following a second-quarter fracas.

George's scoring outburst came in the final 4:47 of the second quarter as Oklahoma City outscored the Bulls 23-7 and built a 64-44 lead by the break. Outside of that nearly five-minute stretch, he shot 2 of 13 from the floor and scored just one point in the second half.

Russell Westbrook had 13 points, 16 rebounds and 11 steals for his 111th career triple-double. Steven Adams added 19 points and Dennis Schroder scored 18 for the Thunder.

Lauri Markkanen and Bobby Portis had 16 points apiece to lead Chicago. Markkanen adding 15 rebounds.

The Thunder sped into the lead with a 21-3 run that erased a 15-10 deficit. But the Bulls quickly reeled off a 19-8 run of their own and closed the gap to two points.

From there, the Thunder took control, building a comfortable lead thanks to George's 6-for-6 shooting to close to the half.

The game was halted for several minutes with 4:27 left in the second quarter after a melee broke out near the Thunder bench when Chicago's Cameron Payne fouled Terrance Ferguson and, nearly simultaneously, Westbrook and Kris Dunn exchanged pushes.

The confrontation ended when Bulls coach Jim Boylen pulled Thunder forward Jerami Grant out of the scuffle by his neck.

The Bulls are at home against Brooklyn on Wednesday.