Almost Nearly Counts as Clippers Lose to 76ers : Barkley and Malone Are Too Much to Overcome, and L.A. Loses Fifth Straight

Like a disoriented boxer not knowing when to quit, the Clippers kept coming at the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday night. Every time they were knocked down, the Clippers refused to stay there.

“Yeah,” Clipper forward Marques Johnson cracked, “this was Tex Cobb versus Larry Holmes.”

Granted, burly Charles Barkley and his 76er teammates beat up on the Clippers often, but they had the darndest time finishing them off. In fact, it was the 76ers who were reeling near the end--before holding on for a surprisingly entertaining 116-114 decision in front of 14,222 fans at the Spectrum.

Perhaps, some who witnessed Wednesday night’s game would consider it the most lopsided two-point win in memory, but that’s only partially true.

The 76ers took the lead late in the first half and never lost it; however, the Clippers never let the deficit exceed 12 points and came dangerously close to catching Philadelphia in the final seconds.

Still, it will be recorded as the Clippers’ fifth straight loss and their fourth on a seemingly endless seven-game trip that continues Friday in New Jersey. Philadelphia, meanwhile, has won 10 of its last 11 games.

“It felt good to still be in a ball game in the fourth quarter,” Johnson said. “It’s an unusual situation for us, especially against a team like Philly. We got some great performances from people we don’t usually go to.”

Rory White, starting at small forward since Johnson was moved to big guard, scored a career-high 29 points. White scored five points in the final minute during the Clippers’ late run.

“I hit my first couple of shots and got the confidence,” White said.

Cedric Maxwell, saying his inspired effort was due to meeting Barkley again, scored 16 of his 19 points in a first half that the Clippers led most of the way. And Johnson, playing 46 minutes with a sore Achilles’ tendon, scored 16 points and had 8 rebounds.

As impressive as those Clipper performances were, though, the tag team of the 6-6, 263-pound Barkley and the 6-10, 255-pound Moses Malone simply was too overpowering.

Barkley, whose variety of inside moves and shots is as wide as his waistline, scored 29 points (hitting 11 of 15 shots) and made the boards his domain with 16 rebounds. His 11 offensive rebounds ties the NBA season high held by Houston’s Akeem Olajuwon. His only concessions to mortality this night were two missed dunk attempts.

Malone went about his business with less flash than Barkley, but he nonetheless registered 31 points and 15 rebounds. And Malone almost never misses dunks.

“He’s a freak of nature to be as big and strong and as quick as he is,” Johnson said. “It’s amazing what he can do with the basketball.”

Said Maxwell: “He is scary out there.”

It was the 76ers who were running scared in the last minute of play. Philadelphia had a 112-100 lead with 3:29 left and figured a long night’s work against the pesky Clippers finally had been completed.

Then the Clippers made a final stab at the 76ers and almost pulled it out. Taking advantage of missed Philadelphia shots and turnovers, the Clippers cut the margin to 116-114 with 11 seconds left on Benoit Benjamin’s short bank shot.

Stunned and perhaps worried for the first time all evening, the 76ers found a way to keep the ball out of the Clippers’ hands and also avoid being fouled, even though Maxwell had Malone in a bear hug in the backcourt.

“I guess I’ve got to tackle him before they call a foul,” Maxwell said.

Coach Don Chaney had mixed emotions about the narrow defeat. Though depressed by losing, he was encouraged with the effort.

“We’re getting there,” he said. “We were at the door but we couldn’t get in. The guys know if they keep working, they’ll be rewarded with a win.”