Clippers Cry Foul After Loss

While winning seven of eight home games though Friday, the Clippers had defeated the San Antonio Spurs minus Tim Duncan and the Philadelphia 76ers without Allen Iverson.

Sunday, their luck turned.

Vince Carter got off the bus with the rest of the Toronto Raptors, made the key plays in the final minutes, and the Raptors won, 94-88, in Staples Center.

Of course, the Clippers didn’t quite see it that way.

They thought a charging foul against Quentin Richardson, which wiped out a late game-tying basket and kept Richardson from going to the free-throw line with a chance to put the Clippers ahead, should have been a block against Carter.

And they wondered how officials Bernie Fryer, Tony Brothers and Zach Zarba all could have been looking the other way during the Clippers’ next possession, when Marko Jaric was bopped on the head by Raptor forward Donyell Marshall while driving for a layup that rimmed out.

But the upshot was this: In front of 14,311, the Clippers’ five-game home winning streak was ended by a team that had lost six of its last seven games and was 0-7 on the road against Western Conference opponents.

The Clippers outrebounded the Raptors, 49-33, but made only 39.5% of their shots and squandered a chance to pull their record to .500.

“That was a tough loss for us,” Coach Mike Dunleavy said.

The Clippers, who got 16 points and 13 rebounds from Richardson and 14 points and 13 rebounds from Elton Brand, rallied from a 54-44, third-quarter deficit to take the lead midway through the fourth.

A baseline jumper by Doug Overton capped an 8-0 run, giving them a 79-76 advantage with 6:57 to play. But Jalen Rose, who led the Raptors with 23 points, made a three-point shot to tie the score, and the Clippers never led again.

Carter, who made only three of 11 shots in the first three quarters, made four of five in the fourth and finished with 22 points. He scored seven consecutive Raptor points late in the game, capping his clutch-shooting run with a 20-foot fadeaway jumper that put the Raptors ahead, 90-85, with 1:02 to play.

At the other end, Carter stepped in front of Richardson in the lane and was called for blocking as Richardson threw in a runner from about four feet out, the Clipper guard adding a free throw for a three-point play.

With the Clipper deficit down to 90-88, Brand then blocked a driving layup by Alvin Williams, leading to another Richardson-Carter collision in the lane.

This time, the official’s call went against the Clippers.

“I don’t say nothing about the calls,” Richardson said. “That’s how people get fined. I don’t want to say nothing in the paper about calls.”

But asked if he was surprised by the call, he said, “Yeah, definitely.”

Said Carter, whose foul on the previous play was his fifth: “It was kind of brave of me, I think, because the play before that I tried to take a charge and [the official] called a block. The guy [Richardson] came right back in the lane, so I said, ‘I’m going to try it again.’ ...

“I said, ‘I’m going to stand here and just hope for the best.’ ”

Best for the Raptors turned out to be worst for the Clippers, whose deficit was 92-88 the next time they brought the ball down the court after Williams made two free throws with 17 seconds to play.

Jaric drove from the right wing. Marshall got a piece of him, the ball rimmed out, and the Raptors got the rebound. The Clippers cried foul.

“It’s our fault,” Jaric said, but he sounded unsure. “We should have ended this game earlier. But those guys made two terrible calls at the end of the game....

“We lose because of that.”

Dunleavy wouldn’t go that far.

“Whatever the film will show, whether it’s a charge or whether it’s a block, the call went against us,” he said. “Whether Marko got fouled or didn’t get fouled, the call went against us. If we get those calls, maybe we win the game. ...

“It doesn’t matter. I haven’t seen them call one back yet.”