Lakers Can’t Overcome Scoring Doldrums, 98-88 : Pro basketball: Trail Blazers get the better of Los Angeles in a defensive struggle.

They started a new chapter in the Laker-Trail Blazer rivalry, and it didn’t look like any of the old ones.

They weren’t fighting for first place, but for second.

Instead of high-flying, high-scoring basketball, the Trail Blazers prevailed in a pitched defensive battle, 98-88, Saturday night in the Forum, dropping the Lakers into fourth place in the Pacific Division.

It was the lowest-scoring game in this series since Jan. 3, 1988, 17 games ago.

This can’t come as a surprise to the Lakers, now so cold that holding opponents under 100 points isn’t enough.

In their last five games, the Lakers have scored 85, 93, 88, 85 and 88 points.

They haven’t shot as high as 47% in nine games.

Saturday they came in at 35.5%.

“We’re struggling shooting the ball,” Laker Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “That puts so much pressure on our defense to perform every night.”

Is this a cold team, or a limited one?

“I’ve got to think at some point in time, we’re going to start shooting the ball better,” Dunleavy said. “We’re not hitting our open shots. That makes it tough to get a lot of space in the low post.”

When these teams met last spring, they were playing for the Western Conference title, but a lot has changed since then. The Lakers lost Magic Johnson forever and Vlade Divac for several months.

The Trail Blazers lost their stride.

Portland started the night with a two-game winning streak, but a 17-10 record overall, compared to last season’s 24-3 start.

Nevertheless, division opponents don’t forget.

“I still think Portland is the team to beat,” Golden State Coach Don Nelson said recently after his team won its second game from the Trail Blazers.

“When it comes right down to it, they’ve got the talent, experience and depth that nobody else has. I’m just glad we caught them early in the year.”

It’s not so early any more. The Trail Blazers attacked the Lakers, if not subtly. They shot, they missed, they rebounded and shot again.

In the first quarter alone, they scored four baskets on offensive rebounds and nine overall.

Since the Lakers would only score 33 field goals in all, this was too much to surrender.

The Trail Blazers led, 28-25, after one quarter and 48-41 at the half . . . after the Lakers went the last 3:24 without a basket.

James Worthy led a 21-8 spurt to start the third quarter that boosted the Lakers into a 62-56 lead.

The Trail Blazers promptly hit the Lakers with a 16-5 spurt to end the third quarter and moved ahead to stay.

Meanwhile, the Lakers missed 10 shots in a row.

The Lakers had enough for a last run, cutting a 76-69 lead to 82-81 when A.C. Green hit a short jump hook, was fouled and made the free throw with 7:25 left.

They would get no closer. Terry Porter, who missed his first five shots, hit two three-pointers, including a 30-footer to beat the 24-second clock, and the Lakers fell away.

“This year, whatever we’re going to do, it’s going to be like an after-Magic type situation,” Porter said.

“It’s just important for us to try to get back to the level we played last year.”

For the Lakers, it’s just important to get back to the level they played last month, no small challenge.

Laker Notes

The Lakers are 6-7 in December with one game left. If they lose it, they will have their first losing month in 12 seasons. . . . Of the 10 starting players Saturday, only Buck Williams shot at least 50%. Williams made three of five shots. . . . Trail Blazer Coach Rick Adelman: “We were both shooting around 35% at halftime, and I told my assistants the first team to hit a couple of outside shots might win this game.”

Lon Rosen, Magic Johnson’s agent, denied stories that Johnson’s corporate sponsors are backing away from him. “There’s no basis for those stories,” Rosen said. “All his sponsors want to stay with him. Seventy percent of his contracts have an out clause if he isn’t on the active roster, and none has exercised that.”

* STAYING PUT: Sherman Douglas will remain in Miami after the Heat matches the Laker offer sheet and retains the point guard. C8

* COMEBACK: Charles Smith scores 26 points, and the Clippers rally to defeat the Philadelphia 76ers, 102-95, at the Sports Arena. C2