Clippers Have Few Bodies, but Lots of Soul, in Victory

Clipper center Greg Kite wore the red badge of courage--four stitches under his chin, the result of an under-the-basket rumble with Houston’s Otis Thorpe in the closing seconds of Thursday night’s National Basketball Assn. game.

Kite, like the Clippers, was bloodied but not beaten. The Houston Rockets were unable to deliver the knockout blow against a team already beat up as the Clippers won, 120-116, at the Sports Arena.

The victory before a crowd of 10,565 might do wonders for the Clippers’ confidence.

First, it ended a 5-game losing streak. And it was accomplished without starting point guard Gary Grant, who is out with an ankle injury, and Charles Smith, whose return was shortened when he went out down the stretch.

It was accomplished with little rebounding success as the Clippers were able to beat the Rockets, a team that was coming off a victory over Cleveland and averaging an impressive 111.3 points a game, with a center, Akeem Olajuwon, in the league’s top 10 in 4 categories.

“It shows we’ve got a lot of character,” said guard Quintin Dailey, who made 16 of 21 shots to finish with a team-high 36 points. “What we’re doing now is playing with a lot of adversity. When you lose the manpower we have, you’ve got to do that.”

In improving to 7-11, including 6-2 at home, the Clippers led for most of the game before Houston went ahead late in the fourth quarter.

The Clippers regained the lead with 1:21 left when Danny Manning hit a jump hook from the right side to make it 115-113. At that point, the Rockets had gone 2:10 without scoring.

Houston (11-8) got 2 free throws from Olajuwon with 36 seconds left to tie it again--2 of his game-high 37 points, to go with 17 rebounds--but Manning responded with another clutch basket. His jumper, again from the right side, put the Clippers ahead, 117-115, with 25 seconds left.

The Rockets’ final possession ended without so much as an effective shot. Buck Johnson worked his way into the middle of the lane and took the potential game-tying shot, but he was called for an offensive foul.

The Clippers, who shot 58.8%, inbounded the ball to Norm Nixon, who was fouled and converted 1 of 2 free throws.

Nixon then smartly fouled Rocket Mike Woodson, the ex-Clipper, to avoid a possible 3-point shot. Woodson made the first free throw and purposely missed, as the Rockets charged the backboard in attempt to gain possession.

But it went to Manning, who was fouled and made both free throws to give him 24 points for the night and finish the scoring.

All along, Kite and Benoit Benjamin, who had 24 points, 9 rebounds and 4 blocked shots in his reserve role, were making it difficult for the Rockets inside, despite Olajuwon’s presence.

“Most of our games at home have been like this,” Clipper Coach Gene Shue said. “They’ve been entertaining, fun for the fans but not too (much) fun for the coach.”

There could be more heartache ahead for Shue and the Clippers, who were out-rebounded, 55-44.

Smith, their leading scorer at 17.8 points a game coming into the evening, returned from the injured list only to suffer another injury. While trying to block a layup by Houston’s Frank Johnson, Smith jumped high and his legs collided with Johnson’s head. Smith slammed to the ground awkwardly, the right side of his back taking the impact.

Smith left the game but returned when Ken Norman got his fourth foul with about 7 1/2 minutes remaining. He hobbled so badly while running that Shue removed him again, this time for good. With 6:33 left and the Rockets up, 103-101, Smith went to the locker room with what was diagnosed as a bruised right wrist and bruised right hip. X-rays will be taken this morning.

Smith’s return, however abbreviated, was a much-needed boost to a team that lost all 5 games he missed, 2 in overtime and another close game to the Lakers before falling by 9 points.

“It was boring and frustrating--both,” Smith said of his time away.

For the Clippers, it was mostly frustrating. Players, coaches and opponents cited Smith’s absence--the result of a sprained left knee--as one of the reasons for their poor play. It was an acknowledgement of how important Smith, a rookie from Pittsburgh, had become to the Clippers in 12 games.

Clipper Notes

To make room for Charles Smith, the Clippers cut forward Dave Popson, who played 48 minutes in his 8 appearances since being signed Nov. 3, the day before the regular season opened. Popson averaged 2.1 points and 1.4 rebounds a game. . . . Guard Gary Grant did not dress because of a sprained right ankle. After missing practice Wednesday, he participated in pregame warmups but felt pain. He donned a soft brace and tried again, but with no success. He changed into street clothes, and Norm Nixon got the start at the point.