Clippers let it get away at the end

Two streaks. One long and another even longer were about 71/2 minutes from vanishing into thin air.

(Well, maybe just that thin air in the uppermost reaches of Staples Center, only visible by binoculars.)

It all unraveled in a barrage of three-point baskets by the Hornets as New Orleans went on a 13-2 fourth-quarter run on the way to a 108-100 victory over the Clippers on Monday night.

The Clippers have lost eight games in a row, and still can’t solve the puzzle of David West and the Hornets, having lost to them 13 consecutive times. West had a game-high 24 points and Hornets rookie point guard Darren Collison, of UCLA fame, had 18 points and 14 assists in 48 minutes.

This time, the Clippers-Hornets outcome actually remained in question until deep into the fourth quarter.

In that small but telling fourth-quarter run, the Hornets made three three-pointers (finishing with nine in all) and the Clippers were one for four from the field. Rarely was a turning point so obvious as the game went from 87-87 to a 100-89 Hornets lead.

The Clippers wasted an 18-point, 17-assist performance from Baron Davis, and 19 points from Rasual Butler, as well as any emotional spark from the return of shooting guard Eric Gordon and energy from second-year center DeAndre Jordan, who had 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Gordon was bound to be rusty, and was, having sat out the previous five games because of a sore right leg. At least his defense was somewhat intact.

But no Clipper struggled more than Chris Kaman, who was three for 15 from the field for eight points.

“I thought we gave them too many open looks,” interim Coach Kim Hughes said. “We really struggled with Chris’ inability to make shots. He really got frustrated and it carried over to his defense.

“It could be fatigue. But I don’t think that’s the issue. I think it’s more mental. I think when Chris misses a couple of shots, he’s his biggest enemy. He beats himself down.”

Said Davis: “I thought if we could have just got Chris some easy layups…. He missed some open jumpers. He was just off tonight.”

Kaman looked far removed from his All-Star form, shooting one for 11 from the field in the first half, missing nearly every possible way.

He had watched his numbers drop significantly on the long futile trip, averaging 11.8 points in the five games.

No one has worked more closely with Kaman all these years than Hughes, who took note of his recent road woes.

“He’s really struggled,” Hughes said in pregame comments. “He’s struggled shooting the ball. He’s struggled on the weak-side defense. His on-the-ball defense has been good. To me, it looks like he’s played with low energy.”

Hughes thought this was all correctable, based on prior knowledge and past performance. That, and the plan to slightly curtail Kaman’s minutes at this late stage.

“I think perhaps the long season … inherently he’s struggled toward the end of the season,” Hughes said. “His numbers have always gone down. I think he’ll address that issue, I think he’ll play well from here on, I think he understands what he needs to do. We’ll play him shorter minutes instead of playing the full quarter.”

Etc.

Clippers forward Craig Smith, who is averaging 7.9 points, sat out the game because of a migraine. Smith has been fairly durable having sat out only three games this season before Monday.... Special courtside guest, courtesy of Clippers owner Donald Sterling, was Air Force Master Sgt. Rob Shahan and his daughter. Shahan just finished an 18-month tour of duty in Iraq.

lisa.dillman@latimes.com

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