Mobley delivers in the clutch

They’re still not as efficient on offense as Coach Mike Dunleavy would prefer, they struggle to maintain leads and a .500 record at this point of the season wasn’t what the Clippers expected.

On the other hand, things seem to be looking up for the Clippers, who have won four in a row and got a go-ahead three-pointer from Cuttino Mobley with 0.6 of a second remaining Thursday night in a 102-101 victory over the New Jersey Nets in front of 18,476 at Staples Center.

Sam Cassell recorded his 10th and final assist on Mobley’s 27-foot shot that triggered celebrations in the crowd -- a rare sight at Clippers games this season -- and stunned the Nets, who outscored the Clippers by 10 points in the quarter but still suffered their third consecutive loss.

“Coach called a pick-and-roll play and Sam got deep in the lane,” Mobley said. “When he got deep in there, Tim [Thomas] and I were saying to ourselves, ‘Whoever touches the ball, we’re going to go home with it,’ meaning that we’re going to hit the shot. Luckily, Sam saw me, I set my feet and it went in.”

Trailing, 101-99, with 8.7 seconds to play, the Clippers inbounded the ball from the sideline in the front court opposite their bench. Cassell then went to work, penetrating and drawing defenders to him, which was what Dunleavy envisioned.

“He sucked the defense in,” Dunleavy said of Cassell. “Cat [Mobley] rolled up, he was open and banged it down. It was a big shot for us, obviously, to keep us going strong with our momentum.”

Mobley’s clutch shot helped the Clippers (21-21) hold off the Nets -- who trailed by 18 points in the third quarter -- and move back to .500 for the first time since Dec. 11.

The Clippers improved to 4-0 on a five-game home stand and would be seeded eighth if the Western Conference playoffs began today.

Before the season, the Clippers aspired to challenge the Phoenix Suns for the Pacific Division title. That goal has been removed from the list, but some could still be achieved, the Clippers said.

“No doubt, there’s a lot this team can still do,” said forward Elton Brand, who shared the team lead with 18 points. “We said all along that we just had to get our squad healthy again and get everyone playing again. Well, we’re there now.”

The Nets (20-23) rallied behind star swingman Vince Carter, who led all scorers with 33 points, and reserve forward Bostjan Nachbar, who scored 16 of his 17 points in the second half and made three three-pointers in the final quarter. Carter just missed on a final tip.

“In the second half, Carter was pretty amazing,” Dunleavy said. “We tried multiple coverages on him, to try to trap him and keep him from getting the ball, but he kept coming up with big shots and big plays.”

Cassell is often the Clippers’ clutch performer. The Clippers are 6-2 since he returned to the lineup after sitting out eight games in late December and early January because of a painful heel injury.

On Thursday, Cassell scored 15 points, but his passing was among the keys against the Nets, the Clippers said.

“He’s made a great difference,” Brand said. “If you check the stats, we were averaging 30-plus assists in the three games prior to this. Down the stretch, or any time in a game, he’s such a threat that teams have to honor him.

“They have to honor him and they have to honor me. They have to honor Cat Mobley, Tim Thomas, Chris Kaman in the post and Corey Maggette.

“It’s the weapons. We have so many weapons, but it makes it a lot easier when Sam is back.”

jason.reid@latimes.com