Clippers can’t keep pace in race

Their situation is clearer for all the wrong reasons, and even the Clippers acknowledge the difficulty of the task ahead.

After losing their third straight supposedly must-win game -- the latest setback being a 103-100 defeat in overtime to the New Orleans Hornets on Tuesday night in front of 17,704 at the Ford Center -- the Clippers said they must win their final five games to be assured of a playoff berth that seemed so probable last week.

Anything less, the Clippers said, would probably lead to their season ending before the postseason begins, which was hard for them to accept after another loss with so much at stake.

That, however, is their playoff picture, and it’s becoming uglier daily for the slumping Clippers.

“Bottom line is, mathematically, we still control our own destiny,” Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “If we win out, we’re in no matter what anybody else does.

“That’s basically what I talked to our guys about: ‘Don’t count on other people to do your job for you.’ We had a hiccup on the road, and we’ve got to bounce back.”

If the Western Conference playoffs began today, the Clippers (37-40) would be on the outside looking in, surprising for them after their recent 7-1 stretch. The Clippers had a three-game winning streak after defeating the Lakers on April 4, and seemed to be in a strong position to climb as high as sixth in the conference.

Then the Clippers forgot to guard the three-point line in the closing seconds of a three-point loss to the Denver Nuggets on Saturday; faced the Dallas Mavericks on Monday with Dallas needing only one victory to clinch home-court advantage throughout the NBA playoffs; and finished a two-game trip against the Hornets (37-41), who also are vying for the West’s eighth spot.

The Golden State Warriors (38-40) are eighth, half a game ahead of the Clippers, who are half a game ahead of the Hornets. If the teams finish with identical records, tiebreakers would determine who earns the berth, but that’s not the Clippers’ focus.

“It’s going to take winning out,” said Elton Brand, who scored a game-high 37 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and made three baskets in the final 1 minute 4 seconds of regulation -- two in the final 9.5 seconds -- to help force overtime.

“With the way Golden State is playing, with the way Denver is playing and with the way the Hornets are playing ... that’s the only thing we could do,” Brand said. “A few days ago, it was like, ‘OK, you guys are in, now who are you going to play?’ Now, it’s like, ‘How are you guys going to get in?’ We just have to dig deep.”

Brand appeared to do so in the Clippers’ late rally.

After leading by 12 points in the first half, the Clippers were outscored, 29-14, in the third quarter and trailed, 70-66, to start the fourth.

The Hornets had a five-point lead with fewer than two minutes to play in the fourth, but Corey Maggette (24 points) made a three-point shot with 1:54 left that pulled the Clippers within 85-83.

The Clippers got a steal on the Hornets’ next possession and quickly went to Brand in the low post. Brand tried to pass to Maggette on the wing, but Devin Brown got to the ball first because Maggette ran into official Jess Kersey.

Brown raced for a dunk that gave the Hornets an 87-83 advantage with 1:22 remaining, and the officials called a timeout because Kersey remained on the floor after the collision along the sideline. Hornets medical personnel observed Kersey, who resumed his duties after a few minutes of rest.

It seemed the Hornets had the victory, but Brand scored on a dunk in the final 10 seconds and made a jumper with one second to tie the score at 89-89. David West (33 points) couldn’t get off another shot for the Hornets before the clock expired, but the Hornets took a seven-point lead in the extra session and improved to 7-0 in overtime games. The Clippers dropped to 1-1.

And up next for the Clippers, the Lakers on Thursday at Staples Center.

“Five games. If we don’t win the next five games, our season will be over,” Jason Hart said. “It’s that simple.”

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jason.reid@latimes.com

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KEYS TO THE GAME

* Devin Brown’s big night. The Hornets guard scored 25 points, including 14 in the third quarter.

* Cuttino Mobley’s off-night. Mobley, who struggled while guarding Brown in the third, missed 11 of 15 shots and scored nine points.

* Chris Paul’s decision-making. The second-year point guard made few mistakes while running the Hornets’ offense.

-- JASON REID