Trip to Finishing School May Be Needed

If basketball were like hockey, the Clippers would be 9-3-1 for an outstanding start to 2002-03. Alas, roundball teams play four quarters instead of three periods and the Clippers’ success over three quarters hasn’t translated into victories.

“I know we have to find a way to close games out,” Coach Alvin Gentry said.

The best example of the Clippers’ inability to finish off the opposition happened Friday against the unskilled but hard-working Denver Nuggets, losers of five consecutive before Gentry’s team hit town. The Clippers built a 16-point lead early in the fourth but couldn’t put away the Nuggets.

James Posey’s basket at the buzzer enabled Denver to complete a 72-70 comeback victory, but it wasn’t the real reason the Clippers lost. There were several factors at work, perhaps led by the Clippers’ inability to hold the ball for a quality shot at the basket.

The Clippers had seven turnovers in the fourth quarter, which the Nuggets turned into three points. But more to the point, that was seven times the Clippers failed to get off a shot. The Clippers had 15 shots, making four, in the fourth. The Nuggets took 19 shots, making 10.

Power forward Elton Brand, the Clippers’ leading scorer with an average of 16 points, did not take a single shot in the final quarter. Center Michael Olowokandi, averaging 15 points, had only three shots. Point guard Andre Miller, averaging 15 points, also had three.

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The Clippers last played a standout center on opening night, when Cleveland’s Zydrunas Ilgauskas scored 19 points and took nine rebounds in the Cavaliers’ 98-96 victory.

Today, the Clippers get their first look at Houston’s Yao Ming. After a slow start, Yao is now a starter and coming off an 18-point, eight-rebound game in the Rockets’ victory Friday over the Washington Wizards.

“He’s for real,” Michael Jordan said of Yao, the No. 1 pick in the 2002 draft.

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TODAY

vs. Houston, 12:30 p.m.

Telemundo

Site -- Staples Center.

Radio -- KXTA (1150).

Records -- Clippers 4-9, Rockets 7-4.

Record vs. Rockets (2001-02) -- 3-1.

Update -- Houston guard Cuttino Mobley was put on the injured list because of sore ankles and is expected to be sidelined for two weeks. The Clippers have won three consecutive games against the Rockets. They have lost five of their last six games.

Tickets -- (800) 462-2849.