Poise Sought as Playoff Race Toughens

Losses in three consecutive games have taken a toll on the Clippers’ fragile psyches. The playoff chase suddenly has turned into a sour experience for the NBA’s youngest team (average age: 24.8 at season’s start).

“I don’t blame anybody out there but ourselves,” said Darius Miles, 20, the youngest Clipper. “We’re playing bad when it’s counting. We’re all beat up. We’re just trying our best just to fight through it. We want to make the playoffs so bad, and we’re trying. We just need to play from the start to the finish.

“Every game we lose, it’s not because of the refs, it’s not because of the coaches, it’s because of the players out there.”

The Clippers’ latest loss was a dispiriting 107-90 defeat Tuesday against the Kings at Sacramento. Several times during the game, teammates could be seen barking at each other.

Michael Olowokandi, unhappy after picking up his fourth foul, booted the ball the length of the court and received a technical foul.

The loss, coupled with Utah’s victory over the Houston Rockets, left the ninth-place Clippers 31/2 games behind the eighth-place Jazz in the battle for the final Western Conference playoff spot.

The Clippers are running out of time. There are only 10 games remaining, starting Friday against the Suns at Phoenix. They have two games remaining against the Jazz, including Saturday at Staples Center.

“We didn’t handle adversity very well [Tuesday],” point guard Jeff McInnis said. “Every time things went wrong, we argued among ourselves. We just weren’t together. Our motto all season has been, ‘Stick Together.’”

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Elton Brand’s three-point performance Tuesday against the Kings tied his season low, set Feb. 14 against the San Antonio Spurs. He sat out the fourth quarter because of flu-like symptoms.

“I don’t like to make excuses,” said Brand, averaging team-leading totals of 18.2 points and 11.8 rebounds.