Clippers Return Home, but Keep Losing : Pro basketball: Wilkins scores 28, but effort is poor in 117-102 loss to Suns before sellout crowd.

The Clippers, who lost five of six games on a nine-day Eastern trip to drop out of playoff contention, returned home from the road to nowhere.

But they played as poorly as they did on the road, losing their fourth consecutive game, 117-102, to the Phoenix Suns Thursday night before a sellout crowd of 16,005 at the Sports Arena.

Dominique Wilkins, the NBA’s fourth-leading scorer with a 25.7 average, scored 28 points to lead the Clippers. Wilkins made 11 of 23 shots. He also had eight rebounds and four assists.

“We didn’t come to play for four quarters as a team,” Wilkins said. “If you want to win, you’ve got to do it as a team. You’ve got to come and give everything you’ve got, each and every person. You can’t turn it on and off in this league.”

When the Clippers left town, they had won a season-high four games in a row and five of six to get back into contention.

“I think we got satisfied or something,” Wilkins said. “I wish I could answer it.”

It’s only a matter of time until the Clippers (25-45), who made the playoffs the last two seasons, are officially eliminated. They trail the Denver Nuggets by 10 games with 12 games left in the race for the eighth and final Western Conference playoff berth.

“These are the dog days,” Clipper forward Loy Vaught said. “We know we’re not going to make the playoffs and it’s hard playing to the best of our abilities.”

Clipper center Elmore Spencer, who had averaged 13 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.2 blocked shots in his last 12 games, disappeared against the Suns, scoring only four points and and grabbing two rebounds in 26 minutes.

“Tonight I played terrible,” Spencer said.

The Suns, who had a 59-48 lead at halftime, took an 18-point lead eight minutes into the second half as Cedric Ceballos scored 13 third-quarter points. They led, 89-75, going into the fourth quarter.

Ceballos, who had 37 points against the Clippers in his last game, had a game-high 32 points, making 11 of 21 shots, as Phoenix (46-23) won its third game in a row.

Clipper Coach Bob Weiss went with a patchwork lineup of rookies Harold Ellis, Charles Outlaw and Bob Martin, second-year guard Randy Woods and Wilkins at the start of the final quarter.

“I want to take a look at our younger players for the remainder of the year, but I still want to put a competitive team on the floor,” Weiss said.

But the gamble didn’t work as Charles Barkley, who had 16 points and 17 rebounds, took advantage of the mismatch against Outlaw to score on back-to-back drives as the Suns built a 21-point lead. Barkley, who played 27 minutes, didn’t play much in the second half.

“They didn’t need me much tonight in the second half,” Barkley said. “You don’t drive your Mercedes Benz to the grocery store. You save it for the long trips.”

The Suns, who reached the NBA finals last year, are currently fourth in the Western Conference and would seem to have a tougher time returning to the finals.

“If we win the championship this year, you’ll never see me again unless you’re in Alabama or Arizona,” Barkley said. “In 1998 I’m going to win governor of Alabama.”