History Is Repeated: Lakers Beat Clippers

Appropriately, milestones that took the Lakers months and years to compile were reached the same night, indications of domination, around town and around the country.

The most important numbers were 110-102, the score by which they beat the Clippers at the Forum Friday.

But for posterity, there are the rewards from the long-term struggle: the 25th consecutive victory over the Clippers in Inglewood, a streak that stretches all the way back to the Clippers’ San Diego days. Plus, for the 11th consecutive time, a 50-win season.

And counting? The Lakers, who have lost in their last two trips to the Sports Arena, face a tough schedule ahead. They play the Clippers at the Sports Arena, get Portland twice and Utah once within the next five games, besides playing the Clippers. It should have a major impact on the race for the Pacific Division title and the best record in the Western Conference.

So, if accomplishments are in the eye of the beholder, the Lakers see another 50-victory season as nothing more than a mild pause on the way to more profound achievements. When you get right down to it, reaching this level was, at best, borderline noteworthy to a team that is used to far greater things.

“It’s not 50,” Coach Pat Riley said. “It’s 60. But I think it shows one thing. It makes a statement that can be taken a little bit for granted, but it shows how consistent you have to be. Some people would drool for a 50-win season.”

But not the Lakers.

“It will take about 64 wins to establish the best record (in the league),” said center Mychal Thompson, who, with 10 points, was one of seven Lakers in double figures. “Fifty doesn’t get you anything. Sure, it gets you into the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean anything if you don’t have the home-court advantage.”

The Lakers certainly have that--among many things--on the Clippers, who have not won at the Forum since Nov. 27, 1981. The most recent outing couldn’t be considered a breather. The Clippers, losers of four in a row, stayed within striking distance most of the way. But it was comfortable enough for the Lakers, whose lead never dropped to fewer than eight points in the second half.

The damage was done in the first quarter. The Lakers (50-16) won that, 30-22, and the Clippers played them even the rest of the way. The final three quarters went 80-80, though the Lakers led by as many as 18 points in the second quarter and 15 in the fourth.

“Every time we got it down to single digits, they pushed it back up. We got it back down, they pushed it back up,” Coach Don Casey said after the Clippers were pushed farther away from an already unlikely playoff spot. “It was so much see-saw. But for us at this stage, it meant something for (the Lakers) to have Magic (Johnson), (James) Worthy and (Byron) Scott in at the end. That showed they weren’t secure, either.”

The Lakers were pleased to have Worthy in, period. After missing his first game of the season, Tuesday against Charlotte at the Forum, and then practice Thursday, Worthy returned, looking more fresh than injured with back spasms. A decision to play wasn’t made until after the pregame shoot-around, but he ended up in the starting lineup.

“Sore,” Worthy said afterward. “Real sore. But better.”

That he had six points in the first quarter and seemed to move without problem were even better signs. The Lakers used that boost, and 13 points from Johnson, who finished with 28, to build the eight-point advantage after 12 minutes.

A 12-3 run to open the second quarter pushed the Laker lead to 42-25, Worthy accounting for four of those points. About a minute later, with 7:27 remaining in the half, a free throw by Orlando Woolridge gave the Lakers a 45-27 lead.

The Clippers (26-42) appeared headed for a blowout. It didn’t help that Charles Smith got his third foul with 5:22 left, even though he would last the entire game and finish with a team-high 23 points.

But they rallied from there, cutting the deficit to 47-37 on Danny Manning’s layup with 3:28 to play. The Lakers got the cushion back to 13 moments later, but the Clippers responded by ending the half with a 6-2 surge that closed the gap to 54-45 at intermission.

Johnson had 16 points by then, having made six of nine attempts.

The Clippers, who go from one division leader Friday to another, Utah, tonight, got no closer than nine points in the third quarter. It was 80-71 heading into the fourth.

“The Clippers are a young, talented, aggressive team that plays everyone tough,” Riley said. “Unless you put them away, they keep coming back at you. We knew that they would keep at us, and that we must be as consistent as ever.”

Which the Lakers were--and are. The 50 victories shows that, if nothing else.

Laker-Clipper Notes

With a starting five of Danny Manning, Charles Smith, Benoit Benjamin, Ken Norman and Winston Garland, the Clippers had their 19th different starting lineup in 67 games this season. Norman moved back to guard to offset any size advantage Magic Johnson would have had against Jeff Martin, who had started the previous four games in the backcourt . . . Laker Orlando Woolridge became a father for the second time Thursday, when his wife, Pat, gave birth to Renaldo James Woolridge at St. John’s Hospital in Santa Monica . . . The Lakers and Clippers meet twice more in the final month of the season, including Wednesday at the Sports Arena.