Win Over Suns Is No Sweat

Still flush from Wednesday’s victory over the Dallas Mavericks, the Clippers promised in a newspaper advertisement that there would be “plenty more buzzer-beating action” Saturday night against the Phoenix Suns.

Not that anyone complained, but none was necessary.

Against the only team in the Western Conference with a worse record than theirs, a loser of eight of their last nine games and five in a row, the Clippers cruised to a 106-91 victory in front of an announced 14,874 at Staples Center.

They led by 14 points at halftime, 23 in the third quarter.

“It definitely feels good, to keep [the lead] in double figures pretty much the whole time, like we were supposed to,” guard Quentin Richardson said. “We came out and got a good jump on them ... came out with good intensity early.”

And kept it up too. They made 47.6% of their shots, their third-best percentage of the season, and outrebounded the Suns, 53-36.

Richardson, who had gone nine games without making as many as half his shots, made nine of 17, three of four from beyond the three-point arc, and scored 25 points. Corey Maggette scored 23 points and Elton Brand, improving with each game since his return from the injured list Dec. 5, had 21 points and 14 rebounds.

“Obviously, I’m pleased by a lot of what we did tonight,” Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “We had some really good stretches where we moved the ball well and attacked the rim. We defended pretty well.”

Stephon Marbury led the Suns with 30 points but needed 24 shots to get them. He made nine, as well as converting 11 of 14 free throws, and also had nine assists and seven rebounds. Shawn Marion had 12 points and 10 rebounds but made only six of 21 shots. Joe Johnson scored 13 points on six-for-14 shooting.

The Clippers were 72 hours removed from their most exciting victory of the season, a 100-99 decision over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday that wasn’t decided until a shot by Glen Rice fell at the buzzer, capping a comeback from a 22-point second-quarter deficit.

“There were certain things about that game that I think were very positive, that you can build off of,” Dunleavy said before the game.

“We’ve been good about not giving up; we’ve really played hard. It was very positive to make a run and get a finish. You’d like to get that energy for 48 minutes. ...

“When we were scratching our way back, 90% of our possessions were good team possessions -- good ball movement, better screens, better cutting, better passing. And that’s what we want to bottle.”

The Suns, meanwhile, were hoping to put recent events out of their minds. In a span of only a few days, forward Amare Stoudemire suffered a sprained ankle that will keep him sidelined into next month and they lost for the sixth time in seven games, leading to Wednesday’s firing of coach Frank Johnson.

Then, in their first game under new Coach Mike D’Antoni, their losing streak reached four games when they lost Thursday to the New Orleans Hornets.

At 8-15, they’re last in the West after making the playoffs last season.

The Clippers, after making a season-high 52.6% of their shots against the Mavericks, converted 51.1% in the first half and scored 61 points, a season high.

They turned a three-point deficit into a 38-27 lead with a 14-0 run that spanned the first and second quarters and led by 14 points at halftime.

Brand and Maggette each had 13 points at the break, Richardson had 12 and rookie Chris Kaman had made all four of his shots.

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Eddie House, sidelined since Dec. 5 because of a sprained left foot, has resumed practicing with the Clippers and is eligible to be activated before Monday night’s game against the Hornets.

Dunleavy, however, said he was undecided about how or if the club would clear a place on the active roster for the reserve guard.