Clippers Beat Pacers, Stop Losing Streak at 7 Games

Another Clipper losing streak ended Monday night. This one lasted seven games and 18 days and resulted in considerable speculation that Coach Jim Lynam’s job is in jeopardy.

Lynam’s status may still be in question this morning, but at least he has a 115-96 win over the Indiana Pacers before 6,942 fans at the Sports Arena to back him up. That might not seem like much, considering the Pacers’ pitiful 16-33 record, but Lynam and the Clippers no doubt will take it.

“This was a much-needed win,” Lynam said. “I’m not going to question you on that.”

The Clippers (20-29) came into Monday’s game in danger of making their losing streak the longest of the season. Instead, the Clippers recorded their first victory since Jan. 16, when they beat the Houston Rockets at the Sports Arena.

Circumstances dictated unusual measures, so the Clipper players held a meeting--no coaches allowed--earlier Monday. It was apparently a refresher course on what the Clippers have done right when they have won games this season, which many may have forgotten. It had been three weeks, after all.

“It was a good meeting because in the past seven games, we forgot what made us successful,” guard Derek Smith said. “Losing becomes contagious. We really needed this win tonight. You could see it in everybody’s faces.

“There was a feeling of need. I don’t know when we would’ve won if we hadn’t done it tonight. It was like we reached the bottom, and there was no where else to go but up.”

The strain of the prolonged losing streak clearly showed on Lynam.

“What happens is that, when you’re losing, everybody gets frustrated,” Lynam said. “There’s a tendency to look outside yourself for the problems and reasons for it. What you need is unity.”

Team unity was evident in the third quarter when Indiana made its run behind forward Herb Williams, who scored 16 of his 21 points in that span. Unaccustomed as they are to being in the lead, the Clippers were determined not to lose it even though the Pacers erased the Clippers’ once-comfortable, 13-point lead and tied it three times midway through the quarter.

Putting together two impressive fourth-quarter runs--outscoring Indiana, 14-6, early and 14-2 late--the Clippers turned a close game into a 19-point win, their largest margin of victory this season.

The Clippers dominated statistically, making 53.1% of their shots from the field and 80.6% of their free throws (29 of 36). Indiana shot just 42.7% and made 13 of 14 free throws.

Norm Nixon led the Clippers with 21 points and 10 assists. Derek Smith, who sat out much of the second half because of foul trouble, finished with 19 points after leading all scorers at halftime with 13. Marques Johnson added 18 points and six rebounds, while Michael Cage had 14 points and seven rounds off the bench.

This was the first full game that Cage, who has been bothered first by back spasms and lately by the flu, has played in almost two weeks. Cage helped spark the Clippers in the first half and scored five fourth-quarter points when the Clippers pulled away.

“Michael Cage gave us a big lift,” Lynam said. “Remember, he had missed five of the last eight games. But I never saw that (in the newspapers). We’ve been sub-par physically in this stretch. Remember the game that started this streak? It was against Dallas (Jan. 19 at the Sports Arena) when Derek, Marques, Cage and Harvey Catchings were out. Plus, we had to play the Lakers twice and 76ers once.”

Granted, injuries and a tough schedule hit the Clippers at the same time. But Lynam admits the Clippers also played poorly in many of those seven losses.

“I think our effort in the Laker game (last Saturday) was good and it carried over into practice yesterday and tonight’s game,” Lynam said.

And don’t forget the team meeting Monday. Clipper players surely didn’t.

“We talked about a lot of the things we did out there tonight,” Cage said. “We hustled, we had a total team effort defensively. We were able to run and get the ball in low. . . . We won.”

Clipper Notes

Injury update: Bill Walton, bothered by a sore right ankle, missed Monday night’s game and will likely miss Thursday’s game at San Antonio. After that game, the Clippers don’t play again until Feb. 12 against the Lakers at the Forum . . . Going into Monday’s game, the Clippers were 0 for 5 against Central Division teams. They lost to Milwaukee twice, as well as Chicago, Atlanta and Cleveland . . . Before the game, the Clippers honored Norm Nixon, who was selected for the All-Star team. The Clippers announced that they would donate $100 for every point or assist Nixon scored Monday night to the African Relief Fund, benefiting Ethiopia and other countries hit by famine. Chalk up $3,100.