Rockets make Clippers hurt

The Clippers, playing with as full a complement of players as they’ve had in nearly three weeks . . .

Oops. Not so fast.

Corey Maggette, the team’s leading scorer, returned after sitting out four games, but veteran point guard Sam Cassell exited in the first quarter Monday because of a strained left calf.

The revolving door of injuries and Tracy McGrady’s second-half splurge resulted in an 88-71 loss to the Houston Rockets at Staples Center in front of 15,422, who saw the Clippers dip below .500 for the first time this season.

“It’s been an ongoing battle,” Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “I don’t even know what to say about it. It’s just one guy to the next.”

The team is stumbling and sputtering as it approaches the end of a tough stretch to end the first month of the season, having lost three straight games and seven of nine.

The Clippers (6-7) end the month with a game in Denver on Friday before playing a relatively mild schedule in the first part of December.

“We just haven’t had the same pop, the same ability to run up numbers in spurts,” Dunleavy said.

McGrady scored 28 of his 36 points in the second half en route to a 13-for-26 shooting performance. Rafer Alston scored 17 points and Yao Ming had 14 points and eight rebounds for the Rockets, who had lost six of their previous seven games.

“My concentration, focus tonight was unbelievable,” said McGrady, who had eight rebounds and six assists.

Chris Kaman, who finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds but also had seven turnovers, said before the game he would attempt to run Yao up and down the court in an effort to tire him out.

“Get him tired,” Kaman said. “He’s very good. He’s a talented basketball player. I’m not saying he’s not good, but he has such a distinctive advantage in being so big, it’s almost not fair. He’s 7 feet 6. The guy can dunk the basketball without even jumping.”

That worked for a while, until McGrady started making shots, opening up Houston’s entire offense. The Rockets outscored the Clippers, 29-13, in the fourth quarter.

“Yao’s size and McGrady’s ability off the dribble,” Dunleavy said simply, assessing Houston’s strengths. “You’ve got two guys that are dominant players if they can get it going.”

Maggette returned from a strained right hamstring, reserve guard Brevin Knight returned from a strained right groin, and the Clippers were set to play with as healthy a roster as they’ve had since Cuttino Mobley suffered a strained right groin Nov. 7 against the Indiana Pacers -- the team’s fourth game.

But Cassell went down at 8:18 of the first quarter, straining his left calf while running along the baseline.

The condition of Cassell, who recently turned 38, was a key issue entering the season. He sat out 24 games last season because of injuries and Dunleavy attempts to rest him, especially on back-to-backs, to keep him fresh.

Cassell is scheduled to be evaluated today.

Knight and Dan Dickau, taking over the point, combined to shoot only two for15 against the Rockets.

Maggette appeared sharp, scoring 21 points on seven-for-13 shooting in 29 minutes.

“It felt all right,” he said. “Just trying to get the timing and help us any way I can. We had an opportunity tonight and we started turning the ball over.”

The Clippers shot only 32.9% and were three for 12 from three-point range.

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jonathan.abrams@latimes.com