Late Run Propels Clippers : Pro basketball: They use 13-1 burst to pull away from the Timberwolves, 103-95.

The dance with these ‘Wolves was slow, excruciatingly so because the Clippers couldn’t get off the floor. It was Minnesota’s pace and, for the longest time, Minnesota’s game.

Then Larry Brown turned to his three-guard lineup and the tempo turned to 78 r.p.m., the preferred Clipper speed. It was the spin they wanted, using defensive quickness and a 13-1 run during the fourth quarter to score a 103-95 victory over the Timberwolves at the Sports Arena on Friday night.

Minnesota shot 55.7%, but only 39% during the fourth quarter, when starters Ron Harper and Mark Jackson were joined by Gary Grant, a lineup that has worked with great success of late.

The Clippers trailed, 88-84, at that point. While Minnesota went 3:25 without a point, the Clippers got baskets from four players during the 13-1 run, good for a 97-89 lead with 1:39 remaining. The victory was sealed moments later, when, after Christian Laettner made a free throw for one of his team-high 24 points and the Timberwolves’ only point during that stretch, Ken Norman’s dunk made the score 99-90 with 1:05 to play.

“Our defense caused that,” Grant, who had eight assists and three steals, said of the Timberwolves’ sudden stall.

“They had a couple of wide-open shots and didn’t take them. When they swung the ball around, we had someone there.”

Said Minnesota Coach Jimmy Rodgers: “I give their defense credit. You’d like to think you would go out and get good looks at the basket, but they (the Clippers) did not allow it. I thought they played their best when they went with the small lineup.”

It was a close escape for the Clippers, who got 27 points from Danny Manning and 25 points and 10 rebounds from Norman. Probably too close considering Minnesota’s short-handed plight.

The Timberwolves lost Chuck Person, No. 1 on the team in scoring and rebounding and No. 2 in assists, 2:45 into the game. The preliminary diagnosis was a strained right Achilles’ tendon, a minor injury, and Tony Daly, the Clipper team physician, advised him to call it a night.

Person said after the game that he felt a pop and thought the injury might be more serious.

From this came a great start for the team that had lost six of seven and had failed to shoot at least 43% in seven of their previous 10 games. The Timberwolves, averaging only 98.6 points, made 16 of 20 shots during the first quarter (80%) for a 34-31 lead.

But the Clippers took a 60-54 halftime on 19 points by Manning and 16 by Norman, despite Minnesota going 22 of 35 (62.9%) from the field. The Clippers were at 56.3%, on 27-of-48 shooting, and had a 9-2 run late in the second quarter to surge ahead.

That momentum carried over into the second half, when the Clippers opened a 67-56 lead in only 1:12 and prompted the Timberwolves to call a timeout. Almost as quickly, it was gone, thanks to a 12-2 rally by Minnesota that turned a 71-62 deficit into a 74-73 lead.

Clipper Notes

Stanley Roberts, wearing goggles to prevent further injury, returned to action after sitting out the second half and overtime of Wednesday’s loss to Golden State after being inadvertently elbowed in the left eye by Tyrone Hill of the Warriors underneath the basket. “I saw it coming,” Roberts said. “I just couldn’t move. You know how you sometimes freeze on the spot? I just couldn’t do anything. When I was hit, I couldn’t do anything. I was in shock. That’s a horrible feeling, knowing it’s coming and not being able to move.” Roberts is suffering no lingering effects other than a small blood spot and will use eye drops a few times a day and return to the doctor in about a week.

Larry Brown, fired by the San Antonio Spurs in January, on the dismissal of friend Jerry Tarkanian: “I’m just hopeful people remember him for all the great things he’s done and that he will go and do what he wants with the rest of his life. He has done so much for this game. I’m also hopeful it works out for San Antonio.” Rookie Elmore Spencer, who played for Tarkanian the last two seasons at Nevada Las Vegas, said he was surprised by the news, but added that the wear of a 9-11 start was apparent: “He might have been a tad bit spoiled with all the winning (at UNLV),” Spencer said. . . . John Williams, listed as questionable after sitting out the last game because of tendinitis in both knees, played.