Malone, Squared, Befuddles Clippers : Pro basketball: Karl Malone’s 31 points, Jeff Malone’s 29 lead Jazz to 131-102 victory.

It’s simple math, really: Malone to the second power.

Karl Malone is the All-NBA power forward who glides the court like a guard. Jeff Malone is the veteran shooting guard the Utah Jazz acquired from the Washington Bullets in the off-season to give outside support to the mostly inside game of his namesake. Their chemistry offers problems too tough for NBA scientists to solve.

The laboratory blew up in the Clippers’ face Saturday at the Salt Palace, Karl Malone making 10 of 13 shots for 31 points and Jeff Malone 10 of 14 for 29 points to give the Jazz a 131-102 victory.

Not that this came as much of a surprise. The Clippers, like every other team, had crib notes on how Jeff Malone likes to come off one- and two-man screens and fire, but they couldn’t come up with a solution to stop him. He had 16 points in the third quarter, when the game was decided. Karl had 12 in the same 12 minutes, and they were a combined 10 of 12 from the field.

“It doesn’t amaze me,” said Karl Malone, who also finished with 10 rebounds to tie Clipper Benoit Benjamin for game-high honors. “Jeff is Jeff. He’s brought a whole new shooting theme to this team.”

“Any offensive player will tell you there’s that groove where you feel you can take it any time,” Jeff Malone said. “I hit a three-pointer, and I’m not really into three-pointers. It was that kind of night.”

For the Clippers, too. Playing without Charles Smith, sidelined because of a thigh injury, they lost for the ninth time in 11 games. The last time the teams met, Dec. 8 at the Sports Arena, Karl scored 27 and Jeff 20.

This time it was worse.

Looking to end a five-game losing streak against Utah, the Clippers trailed, 68-63, with 8:07 to play in the third quarter. But from there, the Jazz went on a 13-4 run to take control.

When the Clippers closed to 89-80, Karl Malone made his most significant contribution, scoring eight points in 50 seconds. First, a dunk with 1:30 to play, followed by another inside score and subsequent free throw when Ken Bannister was called for a flagrant foul. Utah also got the ball out of bounds from that, and Malone had another three-point play with 40 seconds left, sent to the line again by Bannister.

That made the score 97-82, and even four Clipper points to close the quarter couldn’t ease the damage.

“It was a good run,” Karl Malone said. “As well as I’ve seen us play in a while. . . . Before that, we were stinking it up.”

Said Clipper Coach Mike Schuler: “Those were big, big plays. That’s what happens in our game. It’s a game of runs and momentum, swings and changes.”

But in case the Clippers were going to swing back, Utah opened the fourth quarter with a 21-7 run, Karl Malone scoring seven of the points. In all, the Jazz finished the final quarter with a 34-16 advantage. The Clippers shot only 27.8% in those 12 minutes.

The Clippers scored twice in the final 4:40. The significant basket was a three-pointer by Jeff Martin with 45 seconds left, giving him 25 points and a career high.

Clipper Notes

Mike Schuler got his first technical foul of the season in the second quarter for arguing a non-call when Ken Norman’s shot was blocked by Thurl Bailey. . . . With Norman, Danny Manning, Benoit Benjamin, Gary Grant and Jeff Martin, the Clippers used their 10th starting lineup in 28 games. Charles Smith did not dress because of the thigh bruise suffered Dec. 11. . . . Mike Smrek, signed off waivers Wednesday, made his first Clipper appearance and had four rebounds, four fouls and one point in 14 minutes.