Brand’s Fouls Mean Trouble

Here’s what the Clippers missed while power forward Elton Brand sat out two games because of a strained right calf: 29 points, eight rebounds, three blocked shots and three assists.

Here’s what the Clippers missed when Brand didn’t have the ball in his hands during a 108-95 loss Friday to the Phoenix Suns before 15,756 fans at America West Arena: shot after shot from the perimeter.

Had Brand avoided foul trouble that limited him to 32 minutes, the Clippers might have walked away with a victory over one of the league’s hottest teams. Had the Clippers been able to move the ball into and out of the low post with better precision, they might have won in a blowout.

But Brand got into foul trouble, picking up his third with 4:42 left in the half and his fourth with 9:54 remaining in the third quarter.

Coach Alvin Gentry gambled that Brand could avoid his fifth while continuing to pick apart the Suns’ interior defense. Brand instead picked up his fifth with the Clippers down, 67-60, with 4:52 left in the third, and it all went south in a hurry.

With Brand on the bench and out of harm’s way, the Suns (18-11) went on a 17-6 run to end the third quarter. They also got a driving basket from Joe Johnson and a jump shot from Penny Hardaway to start the fourth quarter to extend their run to 21-6 and their lead to 88-66.

“I got into foul trouble,” Brand said after matching his season high in points. “I’ve got to keep myself out there. I kind of hurt the team that way and wasn’t able to be out there to stop [the Suns’] runs.”

The Clippers (12-17) ruined their opportunities by missing 16 of 18 three-pointers, failing to capitalize on Phoenix’s collapsing defense against center Michael Olowokandi. Again and again, the Suns double-teamed Olowokandi on the low block. Again and again, the Clippers missed open shots.

Eric Piatkowski, the Clippers’ best three-point shooter, is on the injured list because of an abdominal strain.

It also didn’t help the Clippers that Olowokandi finished with as many turnovers as points (six) and didn’t play in the fourth quarter because he simply couldn’t get the ball into the hands of his teammates.

Gentry was diplomatic after the game when asked why he benched Olowokandi, who had a season-low two points in the Clippers’ 87-76 loss to the Suns on Dec. 20 at Staples Center, although he acknowledged his shortcomings without mentioning him by name.

“We’ve got to do a better job of getting the ball out of the post,” Gentry said. “The big guy has got to be able to get the ball out. We tried to go small and get our best athletes on the floor.”

The Clippers made a strong run in the fourth quarter, crawling within 90-81 after Andre Miller’s basket with 6:35 to go. The Clippers then fizzled down the stretch, failing to stop the Suns’ pick-and-roll in the final moments.

Stephon Marbury carved them up. He had 26 points on 11-for-21 shooting. Rookie Casey Jacobsen, a former standout at Glendora High and Stanford, added a career-best 19, making five of seven three-pointers. The Suns played most of the second half without Shawn Marion, who sprained his left ankle.

“We did a poor job on the screen-and-roll,” Gentry said. “We couldn’t get Stephon under control and that was something we talked about after the last game. We tried to play it every different way we could.”