Trail Blazers Lose Dudley : Lakers: Portland beats L.A., 109-102, but its high-priced center suffers a broken left ankle during the first quarter.

The Portland Trail Blazers got one break Tuesday night. They ended their worst start since 1986 by defeating the Lakers, 109-102, at the Forum to gain their first victory in their third game.

But that was minor compared to the break Portland starting center Chris Dudley suffered to his left ankle. He might be sidelined up to six weeks, depending on results from X-rays, which will be taken today at Portland. At least, initial results indicated the injury on the inside of the leg is not the most severe kind of fracture.

Dudley signed a controversial free-agent contract with the Trail Blazers during the off-season after rejecting a seven-year, $21-million offer from the New Jersey Nets. Dudley’s contract with Portland is worth $11 million over seven years, but includes an escape clause after one year that allows him to become a free agent again. Dudley will earn $800,000 in the first year of his contract with Portland.

Now, though, the Trail Blazers will have to retool and find a new center. They could use Mark Bryant, after he returns from the strained left hamstring that sidelined him Tuesday. Or they could dip into the deep front line and use Clifford Robinson--who had 22 points, 10 rebounds, five steals and four blocks against the Lakers--effectively starting three forwards.

“We could become a very, very small team,” Coach Rick Adelman said. “We’ll have to adjust.”

So will the Lakers. Whether it means waiting for Elden Campbell to return from the injured list or having some other big man do the job, they need someone to provide a defensive presence inside. They need someone to stop guards such as Rod Strickland.

“We did not take care of challenging the ball,” Coach Randy Pfund said after the Lakers played one of the league’s top rebounding teams to a draw but allowed Strickland to score many of his 22 points on drives down the lane in the game before 11,476.

“A couple of times, it wasn’t like they (the Trail Blazers) were driving the lane,” Pfund said. “It was like they were driving the 405 freeway from the San Fernando Valley to Westwood.”

In dropping to 1-2, the Lakers had to settle for making the fourth quarter a rush hour. They had a double-digit deficit for the third time in the second half when they came back, getting them as close as 90-86 on Trevor Wilson’s breakaway dunk with 7:31 left.

But the Lakers, who got 21 points from James Worthy and 17 points and 12 rebounds from Vlade Divac, fell back. Again. Their last gasp came when Worthy swished a three-pointer with 1:21 remaining, cutting the margin to 101-97.

The teams traded baskets, then Terry Porter made two free throws for Portland. That gave the Trail Blazers a 105-99 lead.

The game ended a brutal stretch for the Lakers to start the season. They played Phoenix and Seattle on consecutive nights before getting two days off to prepare for the Trail Blazers.

Laker Notes

After Anthony Peeler returned to practice Monday for the first time since early in the preseason, the Lakers said Tuesday that Elden Campbell is also expected to come off the injured list in time for Sunday’s home game against Cleveland. That is the soonest possible for a return and means both would only sit out the minimum of five games. . . . Three Lakers are on the all-star ballot for the Feb. 13 game at Minneapolis: James Worthy, Sedale Threatt and Vlade Divac.