After Fast Start, Clippers Finished : Pro basketball: L.A. comes out smoking, but winds up getting smoked by Cavaliers, 115-98.

The Clippers shot 70% in the first quarter Thursday night at Richfield Coliseum--and led by only one point.

“I think that showed you something,” Clipper Coach Larry Brown said.

It showed that the Clippers were in for a long night, playing that well and barely leading. The Cleveland Cavaliers showed them something the rest of the way, piling up three 30-point quarters to win, 115-98.

The Clippers’ six-game winning streak was ended in convincing fashion, as the Cavaliers extended their home winning streak to 11 and cracked the 50-victory mark for the second time.

The Clippers’ descent was quick. Cleveland made seven of 10 three-point shots, making the Cavaliers 11 of 19 the last two games. Mark Price was four for five and Steve Kerr made all three of his long-range shots.

The three-point baskets helped finish the Clippers. They were within 78-64 midway through the third quarter but were called for their second illegal-defense violation. Price made the free throw, the Cavaliers retained possession, and Gary Grant was called for a technical foul. Price made that free throw, and the Cavaliers again took the ball out. This time, Larry Nance connected from the right side, making it a four-point possession.

Kerr’s straight-away three-pointer came a minute later. After Nance got one of his four blocked shots the ensuing possession, Price hit a three-point basket from the right side. That took care of the Clippers, suddenly trailing, 88-64.

“I thought so,” Brown said. “We had come back and got within 14 and had the ball. Then it happened.”

That, the Cavaliers said, was taking advantage of what the Clippers gave them.

“We shot the ball real well,” Coach Lenny Wilkens said. “Of course, they helped. They are a team that gives a lot of help (defensively). Any penetration, and they are all coming back in to close the middle off. And I thought we realized that and executed some things that got us some outside shots. And when we did it, we shot it real well.”

The Clippers might not find out today exactly how costly the loss was. Ron Harper, in his first game at the Richfield Coliseum since being traded by the Cavaliers, sprained his left ankle late in the second quarter while trying to make a quick stop. X-rays taken at the arena were negative, but Harper said the injury bothered him the rest of the night. More will be known today.

It came on the wrong night for the Clippers and Harper, who acknowledged being a little nervous early with many family members and friends in attendance. He scored 13 points in the first quarter, but played only 13 minutes the second half, partially because the game was a rout, and finished with 20 points on eight-of-11 shooting.

“It’s just another game,” Harper said afterward. “But it was something that meant a little bit more. I’m not going to get carried away and say I owe them something or they owe me something. It was one of those games that was fun to play.”

Not many Clippers could say that.

Clipper Notes

Jerry Tarkanian, in attendance as Clipper color commentator for SportsChannel, said he was happy for Rollie Massimino, who was hired as his successor at Nevada Las Vegas. But, Tarkanian added, he doesn’t look at Wednesday’s decision by the Rebels as closing a chapter in his life. “It was something I knew was coming,” he said of being replaced. “It wasn’t something I didn’t expect, so it wasn’t that big of deal.” Tarkanian, long a favorite of Clipper owner Donald T. Sterling, labeled it a “possibility” that he would join the Clippers in a non-coaching capacity, but said his preference is to go another few years on the bench. That wouldn’t happen with the Clippers, but Tarkanian regards the NBA as a positive option.

Referee Steve Javie ejected Doc Rivers and Cleveland’s Danny Ferry with 4:10 left in the game. Rivers claimed Ferry was elbowing him during a trip downcourt, and when Rivers shoved Ferry, both were kicked out. It was Rivers’ second ejection this season . . . The Cavaliers shot 56.4%. . . . When Cleveland’s Mark Price missed both free throws in a second-quarter trip to the line, it was the first time this season that he has missed two free throws in a row. Price leads the league at 95.5% but fell behind the pace to break the single-season record of 95.8% by Calvin Murphy in 1980-81.