Clippers Take Step in Right Direction

The Clippers took care of business Sunday afternoon against the overmatched Cleveland Cavaliers, winning their fifth in six games, their seventh in the last 11 and topping last season’s total with their 32nd victory in their 63rd game.

And get this, they actually gained ground in their desperate playoff chase.

While the Clippers were beating the Cavaliers, 95-78, before a muted crowd of 12,283 at Gund Arena, the Houston Rockets were defeating the Utah Jazz on Steve Francis’ last-second three-point basket.

Suddenly, the ninth-place Clippers are 21/2 games behind the Jazz for the eighth and final Western Conference playoff spot and four behind the seventh-place Seattle SuperSonics. The Portland Trail Blazers are in sixth place and lead the Clippers by six games.

The Clippers have two games apiece against the Jazz and SuperSonics. They do not face the Trail Blazers again.

If the Clippers remain in the playoff hunt, the final 19 games are only going to gain in significance. The Clippers also are about to become fans of the teams facing Utah, Seattle and Portland.

Sunday, it meant pulling for the Rockets.

“Steve Francis is my man,” Clipper point guard Jeff McInnis said upon learning of Houston’s victory over the Jazz. “I’ve got to page [Houston’s] Moochie Norris right now and say, ‘Thank you.’ I heard some of the guys shouting Steve Francis’ name over there by the TV.”

McInnis was among several contributors to the Clippers’ easy victory, scoring 10 points and adding nine assists and eight rebounds. Seven Clippers scored 10 or more points, led by Elton Brand and Eric Piatkowski, who each had 17.

Next stop: Minneapolis, where the Clippers end a long and circuitous trip with a game tonight against the Minnesota Timberwolves. It’s the final game in a string of 25 of 35 away from Staples Center.

“We’re going there to win,” Coach Alvin Gentry said. “You can’t be satisfied. Hey, we play in the West. We’ve got to step out on the court with the intention of winning every game now.”

There are people within the Clipper organization quietly amazed the team has progressed this far without the services of injured small forwards Lamar Odom and Corey Maggette. For obvious reasons, those people wish to remain anonymous.

But their point is well taken.

The Clippers have moved into the thick of the race without their most versatile player in Odom and perhaps their best defender in Maggette for extended periods. Plus, backup point guard Keyon Dooling has been sidelined by a sprained left ankle for most of the season.

“Having other guys step up is very satisfying,” Gentry said when asked about excelling without Odom, Maggette and Dooling. “I think what you’ve seen so far is that we’re headed in the right direction.... We’re probably going to have to have some help in some directions because of the way Portland, Seattle and Utah are going right now.

“And Phoenix is right behind us. It’s probably going to come down to the last week of the season. But the only way to stay in the race is to keep winning.”

Leaving nothing to chance, the Clippers hammered away at the Cavaliers’ numerous weaknesses Sunday.

The Clippers, taking advantage of the absence of Cleveland forward Tyrone Hill because of a concussion and center Chris Mihm because of a sore knee, outrebounded the Cavaliers, 59-34. Brand had 14 rebounds to go with his 17 points, his 43rd double-double.

And there was more.

For instance, the Clippers limited Cleveland point guard Andre Miller, holding him to six points and 10 assists one game after he had 31 points and 11 assists while playing all 53 minutes of Friday’s overtime victory against the Milwaukee Bucks.

“We just tried to pressure Andre Miller and make him take tough shots,” McInnis said. “I have DirecTV and I know he’s going to go 48 minutes in a lot of games. I wanted to get up on him and make him get tired a little bit. We knew Miller was the key to anything they wanted to do. If we could slow him down, we’d have a good chance to win.”

Brand’s hook shot gave the Clippers an 18-16 lead late in the first quarter and they never trailed again, leading, 26-20, after one quarter and 46-38 by halftime. Midway through the fourth, their lead would swell to 26 points.

With the game in hand, Gentry benched his starters. McInnis, well aware that he was close to a triple-double, did not resist after telling Gentry, “But coach, I need two rebounds and an assist for a triple-double.”

Later, McInnis would tell reporters, “I know I’ve got to chase [Minnesota point guard] Chauncey Billups around [tonight]. I need my legs under me. I’d gladly take the win anytime over a triple-double. We’ve got to be ready to go right at them [the Timberwolves]. We know they’re going to be ready for us. That’s the way it is now when the Clippers come to town.”

When the Clippers last faced Minnesota, it was at the end of a six-game trip and the Timberwolves won, 97-83. This time, the Clippers are at the end of a four-game trip, having won two in a row and four of five away from Staples Center.

“We’re jelling as a team,” McInnis said. “We’re gaining confidence.”