Clippers Beaten, Look Up at .500

ATLANTA —  Nine times in a row before Monday night the Clippers were at .500 and avoided a losing record.

The end of that streak came at the end of the road, when the Clippers lost to the Atlanta Hawks, 121-113, before 8,296 at the Omni to close a four-game trip with a 1-3 record.

The start, last Thursday night at Washington, seemed so encouraging, a 117-98 victory. Then the Clippers lost at Miami, with Stanley Roberts and Danny Manning suffering sprained ankles. Then came Orlando, with Roberts straining his lower back. And now, with Roberts’ second injury keeping him out and dropping the roster to only nine players, came Atlanta.

At 29-30, the Clippers are below .500 for the first time since they were 3-4 Nov. 17, that after an 0-3 start. They previously dodged a losing record by beating such teams as Phoenix, the Lakers, Seattle and Portland, seemingly making a stand at the right times, but the Hawks were too much.

“We’ve just got a lot of work to do,” Coach Larry Brown said. “Being banged up didn’t help us at all. Then, if we don’t guard anybody or rebound, it’s hard to win on the road. Very hard.”

The Clippers are 12-19 on the road and have lost seven of the last nine away from the Sports Arena.

“We’re playing garbage basketball right now,” said Mark Jackson, who had 21 points and 12 assists without a turnover. “There is no question we need to step it up. . . . I really can’t say what it is. The bottom line is we’ve been outworked the last three games.

“But there is no reason to be alarmed. Look around, this team is too talented to throw in the towel. We’ll keep working hard and keep our heads up. There’s no question we’ll get out of this.”

They will have some help from the schedule soon. After playing host to New Jersey Wednesday night at the Sports Arena, the Clippers have a run they need to take advantage of: Minnesota, at Minnesota, at Chicago, Miami, Utah, Sacramento, Milwaukee.

And about being alarmed? The Clippers still have a four-game cushion over injury-riddled Golden State for the last playoff spot in the Western Conference.

But there are problems. The Hawks had lost four of five coming in, but controlled most of the way.

It started with a 13-2 lead, which became 28-14 with 3:36 left in the first quarter. The Clippers shot 68.4% (13 for 19) in the second quarter and 72.2% (13 for 18) in the third to finally move ahead, 83-81.

Atlanta--which got 36 points from Dominique Wilkins, 22 points and 10 assists from Mookie Blaylock and 14 points and 14 rebounds from Kevin Willis--took the lead again on its first possession of the fourth quarter. Paul Graham’s three-pointer gave the Hawks a 91-89 lead and the Clippers could not catch up.

The Hawks had a 13-4 surge to open the final quarter. The Clippers got to within 106-103 on Jackson’s three-point play with 5:38 remaining, but no closer.

“You trade baskets, you’re going to lose,” Brown said. “Every time we made a run and had a chance to get back in the game, (the Hawks) got second shots and loose balls. That was the game.”

Danny Manning had 32 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers, the third time in four games he has scored at least 30.

Clipper Notes

Atlanta native Elmore Spencer started in place of Stanley Roberts and had six points and four rebounds in 15 minutes. “We’ve had too many games, and I was fortunate to start a few others,” Spencer said after making his third start. “That got the starting jitters out of my system.” . . . Roberts, who is unsure how he strained his back, is scheduled to be examined by a doctor today in Los Angeles to determine his availability against New Jersey. Gary Grant and Kiki Vandeweghe, who missed the trip because of injuries, are expected to play against the Nets.

Don’t look for Doug Moe, fired by the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, to join best friend Larry Brown on the Clipper bench. Brown will extend an offer, but expects his former roommate at North Carolina to avoid appearances of moving the Clippers’ current assistants aside. “I’m going to ask,” Brown said. “If he wants to be with me, that’s wonderful. Right now, I don’t know if it’s a good time to ask him his plans.”

. . . The Clippers have lost 15 of 17 to Atlanta. They play April 2 in L.A.