A Victory Away From Last Season’s Total

The Clippers, who recorded their 28th victory with Tuesday night’s victory at Phoenix, are one win away from matching last season’s total.

It’s the fastest that the Clippers have reached the 28-win mark since the 1992-93 season, the last time they made the playoffs.

The Clippers finished 41-41 in 1992-93 under Larry Brown. It was their second-best record since moving to Los Angeles in 1984.

*

The Clippers seemed wound up for the rematch against the Suns, who defeated them by 16 points last Thursday at the Sports Arena.

“It had to be the sun,” guard Malik Sealy joked. “Some people just still had that glow from tanning by the pool earlier today.”

*

Charles Outlaw is usually the first Clipper on the court before games, but Sealy, mired in a shooting slump, was the first to arrive at America West Arena.

The extra shooting paid off as Sealy made six of 12 shots and had 15 points, six assists and two steals before fouling out.

“I was trying to straighten my knuckles out,” said Sealy, who joked that he has been shooting with crippled knuckles. “I got some good looks tonight and it helped. I’ve got to continue to work on it. The only way to shoot out of a slump is to shoot out of it.”

*

Muhammad Ali, a courtside spectator at the game, got a standing ovation with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter.