Clippers Finally Rise Above Suns

After coming close and losing as many as 10 games this season because of poor execution down the stretch, the Clippers finally got a chance to lift a huge burden off their backs Friday night against the Pacific Division-leading Phoenix Suns.

And they did just that. Point guard Jeff McInnis scored 21 of his 24 points in the second half and Lamar Odom dominated both ends of the floor with 23 points, six assists and six rebounds to lead the Clippers to a 98-88 victory before 16,689 at America West Arena, their first win at Phoenix since March 18, 1997.

In ending a losing streak to the Suns at 12, the Clippers led for most of the game and then held off a late Phoenix rally by making 10 of 12 free-throw attempts in the fourth quarter and 16 of 18 for the game. The Clippers entered the game next to last in the league with a free-throw percentage of 66.4%.

“We shot the ball really well tonight and that always helps a team like us,” Odom said of the Clippers, who made 10 of 14 three-point attempts. “We were focused. We executed and played well. It’s how we finished the fourth quarter. . . . Every NBA team is going to make their run, but we were still able to hold them off by 10 points.”

Phoenix, which lost at home for only the second time in 12 games, played without Mario Elie (broken left hand), Tom Gugliotta (knee) and Penny Hardaway (knee). The Suns also didn’t get a good effort from talented forward Shawn Marion, who did not score and had only four rebounds in 21 minutes despite averaging 17.2 points and 11.5 rebounds before Friday.

“The basket was big for them tonight, and they made everything they shot,” said Phoenix guard Jason Kidd, who had 13 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. “We were fighting from behind the whole night.”

For the Clippers, the win avenged a tough loss to the Suns last month at Staples Center. In that game, the Clippers fell behind by 18 points in the second half before coming back in the fourth quarter to send the game into overtime.

Whether the Clippers (8-17) were ready Friday because of how close they played Phoenix the first time or simply because they’re getting better as a team, it didn’t matter. The Clippers took the floor Friday night looking like a team playing to win instead of one playing not to lose.

Struggling center Michael Olowokandi contributed early with a strong first quarter. Because of his inability to score of late, Phoenix opted not to double-team Olowokandi when he got the ball in the low post and he outplayed Suns’ big men Chris Dudley, Daniel Santiago and Corie Blount.

Thanks to Olowokandi’s nine points and five rebounds and a buzzer-beating three-point bank shot by McInnis, the Clippers took a 24-19 lead after one quarter, holding Phoenix to just 33.3% shooting.

With rookie Quentin Richardson, who finished with a season-high 21 points and six rebounds, matched up against former Clipper Rodney Rogers, the Suns looked inside and were able to cut their deficit to one-point midway into the second quarter. But the Clippers responded with a late run and took a 48-41 halftime lead with the help of 14 offensive rebounds.

The Clippers played one of their best quarters of the season in the third by outscoring Phoenix, 24-15, to take a 16-point lead. McInnis (10 points), Odom (eight) and Richardson (six) combined to score all of the Clippers points.

Phoenix tried to make several runs in the fourth but the Suns were shut down every time because of big plays by the Clippers. If it wasn’t Odom diving for a loose ball and knocking it out of bounds off of Rogers, it was Eric Piatkowski making his first basket of the game with a flat-footed three-pointer, or McInnis beating the shot clock with his second three-pointer.

“It was a good win for us but we’re not going to get overly excited about anything,” said Clipper Coach Alvin Gentry, whose team improved to 3-9 on the road.

“We kept our poise. We kept telling our guys that it doesn’t matter if they make a run, but we had to keep our composure. We had to find a way to come up with a basket or free throw. . . . Hopefully, we’ve learned from some of our previous losses that anything can happen and that we have to play an entire 48-minute game.”