Clippers Are Sight to Avoid : Pro basketball: After beating the Magic, they fall flat against the Timberwolves, 105-90.

Clipper forward Mark Aguirre might have been the luckiest man at the Sports Arena.

Aguirre was ejected by referee Hank Armstrong with 8:40 to play in Friday night’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Aguirre was assessed two technical fouls after being called for an offensive foul as he was driving to the basket. Aguirre knocked over a tub of popcorn as he stormed off the court.

But at least he didn’t have to watch the Clippers finish one of their worst games of the season in losing to the Timberwolves, 105-90, before a booing crowd of 8,643.

“That was ugly,” Aguirre said. “Maybe it was a good thing for them to see. I can’t just sit back and look at things like that.

“The officials probably made the right call, but I was so (mad) about what was happening to us after beating Orlando. We’re not going to be flat. If we get beat, we’d better get beat busting our butt. Tonight was extremely frustrating.

“You’ve got to take a step forward by beating a team like Orlando and then you play a team which you should beat and you come out and take care of business. And from day one, we didn’t take care of business.

“I’m not equipped to accept that kind of thing. Maybe it’s my fault. But I’m not equipped to accept the fact of losses like that. I don’t digest them well.”

What kind of night was it for the Clippers?

Guard Ron Harper passed to Danny Manning for a dunk in the third quarter and Manning, who had a team-high 26 points and 11 rebounds, missed the dunk.

That’s the way things went for the Clippers, who did little right in losing to the Timberwolves for the second time in a week.

The Clippers (9-11) had 24 turnovers and shot 28.6% in the third quarter in losing for the first time in eight home games to Minnesota (8-13).

Clipper guards Mark Jackson and Harper combined to miss 14 of 20 shots. Jackson missed eight of 12 shots and Harper missed six of eight shots.

“They came in here and played like this is their home floor,” Harper said.

“We should know the job we gotta do.”

Rookie guard Isaiah Rider, who had 27 points in the Timberwolves’ 109-108 victory over the Clippers last Friday in Minneapolis, scored a career-high 32 points. Rider made 15 of 22 shots as the Timberwolves ended a three-game losing streak.

Rider, the Timberwolves’ top draft pick, had 10 points as Minnesota ended the third quarter with an 18-7 run to take an 82-67 lead. Rider made six of seven shots and scored 14 points in the third quarter as the Timberwolves outscored the Clippers, 28-19.

“He’s had two good games (against the Clippers),” Minnesota Coach Sidney Lowe said. “He had a lot of confidence shooting the ball tonight.”

After dunking on Harper, Rider began taunting him and Rider smiled at Clipper rookie guard Terry Dehere after beating him for a fast-break layup.

Forward Christian Laettner, who had 19 points and 12 rebounds against the Clippers last week, had 24 points and 10 rebounds as Minnesota outrebounded the Clippers, 46-45. He had 19 points and seven rebounds in the first half as Minnesota took a 54-48 lead.

Clipper Notes

The Clippers reportedly talked to the Dallas Mavericks about acquiring center Sean Rooks, who has fallen out of favor with new coach Quinn Buckner. The Mavericks reportedly want a second round draft pick for Rooks. However, the emergence of Clipper center Elmore Spencer, who has played well since center Stanley Roberts suffered a season-ending Achilles’ tendon injury, might have cooled the Clippers’ interest in acquiring Rooks. Spencer scored 10 points on five-of-six shooting and had eight rebounds Friday.

Clipper guard Randy Woods, who had played in only three games this season, made his first appearance since Nov. 20 when he entered the game in the second quarter. Woods, who had played only seven minutes, played 10 minutes. He had no points, one assist, two steals and two turnovers. Woods got an opportunity to play because guard Gary Grant had flu.

J.R. Rider scored 30 points on Dec. 8 against the Portland Trail Blazers for his previous career high.

CLIPPERS TONIGHT

Opponent--Phoenix Suns. Site--America West Arena, Phoenix. Time--6 PST. TV--Channel 13. Radio--KMPC (710). Records--Clippers 9-11, Suns 15-4. Record vs. Suns--0-1.

Clipper update--They had a two-game winning streak snapped in Friday night’s 105-90 loss to Minnesota. Guard Gary Grant, who was sent home with stomach flu after playing only two minutes against the Timberwolves, is questionable. Grant didn’t accompany the team to Phoenix Friday night. However, he might fly to Phoenix today if he’s feeling better.

Sun update--They had a seven-game winning streak ended Friday night with a 104-101 loss to the Orlando Magic. It was the Suns’ first loss in 10 home games. Phoenix has won 12 of its last 14 games. Guards Kevin Johnson and Dan Majerle scored 35 points each in a 114-99 victory over the Clippers on Nov. 9 at the Sports Arena.