Clippers Throw Away Game, Streak

Eric Piatkowski couldn’t have been any more open.

Inserted into Thursday night’s game against the Sacramento Kings with 29 seconds remaining and the Clippers trailing by two points, Piatkowski passed up a wide-open three-point shot with 20 seconds left, throwing the ball to Rodney Rogers, who threw the ball away as the Kings ended the Clippers’ four-game winning streak, 105-98, before 17,317 at Arco Arena.

“You can’t get any more open,” Fitch said.

Compounding his mistake, Piatkowski threw the ball away with 11.4 seconds left after Tyus Edney made two free throws.

‘You’re in the doghouse,” a fan screamed at Piatkowski, who missed an uncontested reverse layup at the buzzer that would have forced overtime in a loss at Washington last month.

Piatkowski was downcast after the game.

“I don’t know what to tell you,” Piatkowski said. “I’ve already had a nice discussion with coach about it.

“I had a good look. I passed it off when I should have taken the shot. Now I’ll spend all night thinking about it. I don’t have any excuse. We had a chance to win the game and we made a couple bonehead plays, mine included.”

Fitch hopes Piatkowski learns from it.

“We’ll be in enough of those situations that once he comes through in one of those situations, it will be a whole new world for him,” Fitch said. “He’s got to learn to capitalize on them. Like I told him with the group, when the coach calls your number for the last shot, that’s the biggest compliment the coach can ever pay you.

“You’ve got to take that shot. That one play didn’t do it. It’s part of growing up.”

With the Clippers trailing, 99-95, guard Malik Sealy, who had 20 points made a three-point shot to pull them within one with 1:18 remaining.

The Clippers regained the ball when Michael Smith stepped on the end line while inbounding the ball.

The Clippers called timeout to set up a play, but Loy Vaught missed a 16-foot baseline jumper from his favorite spot.

The Clippers got another break when Mitch Richmond, who had a season-high 40 points, missed an 18-foot jump shot with 52.8 seconds left, but Rogers missed a shot with 35.9 seconds left.

Sealy fouled Richmond as he was trying to intercept the inbounds pass and Richmond made a free throw with 29 seconds left for a 100-98 lead.

The Clippers, who trailed, 94-85, outscored the Kings, 8-1, as swingman Bo Outlaw, a poor free-throw shooter, made four consecutive free throws.

The Clippers couldn’t stop Richmond, who had a season-high seven three-pointers and scored 27 points in the first three quarters as the Kings recorded the most points the Clippers have allowed this season.

Tyus Edney started in place of Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (back spasms) and was matched up against former UCLA teammate Darrick Martin.