Clippers Get Break on Desperation Shot

Coach Bill Fitch heaved a great sigh of relief as his Clippers defeated the Philadelphia 76ers, 104-102, Sunday.

The Clippers went ahead, 104-102, on a free throw by Rodney Rogers with 1.1 seconds left. Philadelphia inbounded from half court and Vernon Maxwell’s desperation 30-footer left his hand a fraction of a second after the final buzzer sounded before going in.

“We had this all planned out to win at the end of the game,” Fitch said jokingly. “The referee made the right call without question, he just didn’t get it off in time. I’ve seen him do that before when he was with Houston, he does that kind of thing. Today it was just a little late.”

Philadelphia Coach John Lucas, whose team has the worst record in the NBA, expressed frustration.

“This game typifies our whole season,” he said. “It’s the kind of thing that’s happened to us constantly. We’re always short--a player short, an ankle short, or a point short. It’s been that kind of a season.”

Jerry Stackhouse had 32 points for Philadelphia, but missed a short jumper in the lane with eight seconds to go.

“It came down to missed shots at the end,” Lucas said. “We just have to start to learn how to play better down the stretch.”

Terry Dehere scored 21 points and Loy Vaught added 16 for the Clippers, who won for the fifth time in seven games and went to 3-1 on a five-game road trip.

Clarence Weatherspoon had 26 points and 13 rebounds for the 76ers.

A jump shot by Malik Sealy gave the Clippers a 103-99 edge with 1:45 remaining. Stackhouse made two free throws at 1:03 and had a chance to tie the score with 28 seconds left, but made only one of two foul shots.

The Clippers led, 87-86, on a three-point play by Dehere with 10 minutes to play, but Philadelphia rallied and took its biggest lead of the game, 95-87, on two free throws by Weatherspoon with 7:30 remaining.

The Clippers then went on an 11-2 spurt, capped by a three-point shot by Rogers, taking a 98-97 advantage with 4:43 to play.

Pooh Richardson had 11 points and 12 assists for the Clippers.