Clippers melt in the glare

DALLAS -- It was the first of a fleeting few occasions in the spotlight, and the Clippers weren’t quite ready for their close-up.

Playing before a national television audience for the first time this season, they were collared, 102-89, by the Dallas Mavericks in front of 20,246 on Friday night at American Airlines Center.

It was the first of a Texas two-step, the next plunge coming tonight against the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs.

“Obviously, they are all big tests for us,” Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “There’s no question about it for us, we have to pitch two-hitters. We’ve got to get some shutouts in here because we are not very deep.”

The Clippers (9-16) were competitive, staying with Dallas at times, and snapping back from a 12-point halftime deficit to come within three points of the Mavericks at 60-57.

But in the end, the Clippers followed a familiar blueprint, done in by a lack of star power and surplus of injuries, with Dallas outscoring them, 42-32, the rest of the way.

“They are an explosive team,” Clippers guard Brevin Knight said. “We kept them in striking range the entire night. Against a team like this, when you make a run, that’s when you need to hunker down and get tougher. We didn’t put enough pressure on them to where they got nervous. . . . You’ve got to make them press a little bit.”

Reserve forward Paul Davis added his name to a long litany of afflicted Clippers. While deflecting the ball off Dallas’ Erick Dampier in the second quarter, Davis stepped awkwardly on his right leg. He sprained his knee and was helped off the court.

X-rays were negative and Davis was scheduled to return to Los Angeles for an MRI exam today.

“I definitely never felt anything like that before,” said Davis, who left the arena on crutches. “Nothing is final until they get the MRI, so I’m just going to hope for the best.”

Said Knight: “There must be somebody out there with a voodoo doll, sticking pins. It seems like every game, every practice, any point in time, somebody can go down.”

Reigning league most valuable player Dirk Nowitzki had 30 points and hit 11 of 17 shots for the Mavericks (19-9), who shot 55.1% and have won their last five games.

Chris Kaman had another solid performance for the Clippers, with 24 points and 19 rebounds. Cuttino Mobley scored 13 off the bench in his first game back after a stomach virus.

The Clippers collected 16 offensive rebounds and 18 second-chance points to Dallas’ six and five, but hit only three three-point shots to the Mavericks’ eight.

“We went through stretches where we just didn’t shoot the ball well again,” Dunleavy said. “We made some good runs back, but we could never get it cracked. We were missing free throws and things that could have given us some momentum.”

The Mavericks started the second quarter with a 12-2 run and led, 54-42, at halftime. Both teams made the same number of field goals (18) in the first half, but the Mavericks took 34 shots to the Clippers’ 48.

The Clippers are scheduled for four more national telecasts this season. Maybe by then they’ll have some of their core players healthy.

“We couldn’t score the basketball,” Kaman said. “Our offense has been pretty bad. Guys struggle and now we have more injuries. Now it’s Paul. It’s one after another. Left after right. It’s ridiculous.”

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jonathan.abrams@latimes.com