Suns Find Clippers Right Where They Want Them : Pro basketball: Phoenix had lost twice previously to L.A., but rolls to a 122-100 victory and wins for the 16th consecutive time at home.

The Clippers thought they had earned a place under the Phoenix Suns’ skin after becoming the only club to defeat the winningest team in the NBA twice.

And so they thought that a 122-100 rout at the hands of the Suns, before 19,023 at America West Arena, was a statement by Phoenix.

They thought wrong.

The Suns, though aware that the Clippers had won two of the three meetings before Wednesday, simply were acting on reflex. That’s why they are 35-9 overall and 19-1 at home.

Was Phoenix lying in wait for the Clippers?

“I’m sure of it,” the Clippers’ Loy Vaught said after getting a career-high 24 points on 12-of-18 shooting and a team-high 13 rebounds. “They were ahead and didn’t let up. I think they were playing for vengeance, and they got it tonight.”

Added Coach Larry Brown: “We had a lot to do with it, but they played great. They were aware of the fact that we had won a couple times, and they were not going to let it happen again.”

Counterpoint from the Suns’ Danny Ainge, who had 16 points, making all four three-point attempts and six of his seven shots:

“I don’t think so. (Wednesday night) was a typical NBA situation where a team was playing on the road after a tough game (Tuesday) night. We were rested, and you could tell. It was over in the first half.”

If not in the first quarter. The Suns never trailed, were tied only twice, the last time at 11-11, and built a 15-point lead, 41-26. Eleven of their points came off six Clipper turnovers.

Any notion of a Clipper comeback ended quickly. They got as close as 13 in the second quarter, then were overpowered as the Suns, winners of four in a row overall and 16 in a row at home, padded the lead to 26 points late in the first half.

It got as lopsided as 31 points several times in the fourth quarter.

The Clippers finished with 21 turnovers, which Phoenix converted into 34 points. Danny Manning had eight of them while scoring 16 points, breaking a streak of nine consecutive games with at least 20.

The challenge, it appeared, belonged to the Suns. Coach Paul Westphal made sure of that when he told his team after losing Feb. 2 at the Sports Arena not to be complacent or satisfied with having the NBA’s best record, even comfortably. He said they should be better.

So that was the motivation. The Clippers just happened to be on the calendar. Or the menu.

“We’ve got nine losses,” Phoenix guard Kevin Johnson said. “We didn’t want to get 10.”

Clipper Notes

Randy Woods, once the forgotten Clipper guard, has emerged in the most prominent of places. Though averaging only 3.8 minutes per game heading into Wednesday night, last on the team among players not on a 10-day contract, Woods is not only getting more playing time, but in crucial situations. It started with a good showing in the second half of a close game Jan. 30 at Utah and was followed by first-half appearances in consecutive home games against Phoenix, Chicago and Sacramento. In all, after playing in only 18 of the first 38 games, he has been in eight of the last nine. “All the work is paying off,” said Woods, a shooting guard who has been making the transition to the point. “When it happened at first, I was upset that I wasn’t playing. I was a first-round pick and I thought I should have been playing more. But Coach (Larry Brown) spent some time with me and told me the areas I needed to improve on, and I tried to do that. Now, I’m feeling good knowing I could get in every game.” Said Brown: “He’s getting better in practice and working hard. I can’t guarantee him a lot of minutes with Mark (Jackson), Gary (Grant) and (Ron) Harper around because I don’t want a four-guard rotation. But it’s always nice to have someone who will come in with a lot of enthusiasm. He’s done that.”

The Clippers were still waiting word whether Dyron Nix would accept a 10-day contract to replace Ken Norman, who is on the injured list because of chickenpox. The former Indiana Pacer wants to be signed for the rest of the season and has an offer to play in Spain. If Nix turns the offer down, the Clippers might go for Alex Stivrins, who has played this season with Phoenix and the Atlanta Hawks. . . . After a difficult travel schedule in January, the Clippers have only three games outside California during February. The first two were on the current San Antonio-Phoenix swing, the last when they go to Portland on Sunday. Otherwise, seven games are at the Sports Arena, one is at Golden State and another is at the Forum. . . . The Suns’ Negele Knight did not play because of a viral infection.

* NBA ROUNDUP: Reggie Miller is ejected after a first-quarter altercation with Michael Jordan, who goes on to score 40 points and lead the Chicago Bulls to a 115-104 victory over the Indiana Pacers. C8