Clippers Get Close Shave Over Celtics

Going either for team unity or a distraction from the recent past after losing five of their last seven games, many of the Clippers’ players got stubble-close haircuts, with others to follow.

“In the middle of what we were going through, it’s nice to be able to look around, see some of the heads in here and laugh,” Mark Jackson said Wednesday evening before facing Boston. “That helps.”

So does what followed: the first Sports Arena victory ever over the Celtics, a 105-99 decision before 13,556 that included Stanley Roberts playing his best game as a Clipper, Danny Manning getting 26 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots and Ron Harper contributing 20 of his 23 points in the second half and the key defensive play.

“Basically, that’s what we talked about coming in, building momentum for the trip coming up,” Roberts said after getting 14 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks in 28 minutes. “We tried to play like we played at the beginning of the year, when everyone was doing the right thing.”

The Clippers didn’t get their first lead until Manning’s baseline jumper made it 91-89 with 5:06 remaining, the cap to a 9-2 run that prompted a Celtic timeout. The Clippers were up, 95-94, when the game turned their way for good.

It started with the Celtics on a three-on-one break, Harper back against Reggie Lewis, Dee Brown and Kevin Gamble. Harper, in the middle, stripped Lewis as he went for the layup, igniting a break the other way that culminated with John Williams’ reverse layin while being fouled. He made the free throw for a three-point play, a five-point turnaround and a 98-94 advantage.

“I knew he was going to get the ball,” Harper said of Lewis, who finished with 26 points. “If it was me on the fast break with him, I’d give him the ball every time, too.”

The lead became 102-96 with 40 seconds left, finishing the Celtics for the night and their trip at 0-4.

The Clippers played the last 8:20 without Jackson, who went out with stiffness in his neck and a bruised lower back, the result of a second-quarter fall. The injury is not regarded as serious.

The Celtics were closing a four-game Western Conference trip and heading home after the game. The Clippers were ending a four-game home stand and heading to New York today for a six-game Eastern Conference trip that starts Saturday.

The other common denominator, besides leaving town for the other coast, was that both teams were struggling. The Clippers came in having lost five of seven and the Celtics had lost by 16, 16 and 24 points, the latter Tuesday night at Seattle to mark their worst start since 1978-79.

Boston took a seven-point lead in the first quarter, but the Clippers, playing an all-reserve lineup to start the second quarter, pulled closer, 26-24, and tied the game, 36-36, with 2:43 left before halftime.

The Celtics had a 46-40 advantage at intermission, but the Clippers had a franchise record with 13 blocked shots in a half, bettering the old mark of 12 set March 26, 1986. Roberts had four of them, along with seven rebounds, and Norman and Manning had three each. The NBA record is 14, by Washington and Utah.

On the other hand, the 40 points tied a season low for points in a half. The Clippers shot only 35.6%.

By early in the third quarter, with 10 points and 10 rebounds, Roberts had his first double-double of the season. Equally encouraging for the Clippers, he didn’t get his first foul until about two minutes into the second half, earning an ovation from the crowd.

The game was tied, 61-61, before the Celtics used a 10-2 run for a 71-63 lead. That held up for a six-point cushion, 77-71, at the end of the third quarter.

Clipper Notes

The Clippers open a six-game trip, their longest of the season, Saturday afternoon at New York. They play at Boston the next day, meaning the Clippers and Celtics will meet twice in five days. . . . The Clippers finished December with an 8-6 record after going 7-6 in November. It is the first time the franchise has opened a season with consecutive winning months since 1974-75, when the Buffalo Braves went 4-2 in October and 12-4 in November. . . . The 16 blocked shots matched the Clippers’ previous club mark set on Nov. 11, 1990 against Phoenix.