Clippers Catch On in the End L.A. struggles with lowly Portland but pulls off a 97-93 victory that ends streak but leaves players talking about a need for improvement. By Jason Reid, Times Staff Writer April 13, 2006 Pushed to the end on their home court by the team with the NBA's worst record and only three victories since the All-Star break. Yep, the Clippers are ready for the playoffs. They continued to say all the right things Wednesday night about shaping up for the postseason, but the Clippers appeared shabby again in a 97-93 victory over the lowly Portland Trail Blazers at Staples Center. The Trail Blazers often outplayed their struggling hosts in a game that wasn't decided until the closing seconds, and the Clippers needed to make their free throws to end a losing streak at three games. Elton Brand rebounded from his worst shooting performance of the season in Monday's loss to Dallas, making 12 of 16 field-goal attempts and scoring a game-high 25 points. Sam Cassell, who played briefly Monday because of flu-like symptoms, started and contributed 19 points, 10 assists and six rebounds. Chris Kaman (14 points, 11 rebounds) had his 28th double-double, and Cuttino Mobley made two free throws with six seconds remaining in the game to help the Clippers secure the victory. At 45-33, the team has matched the Clipper franchise record for victories in a season, also accomplished in the 1991-92 season. The Buffalo Braves finished 49-33 in the 1974-75 season. The Clippers also swept the season series against Portland, 3-0, for the first time. The Clippers' performance against Portland, however, tempered their mood. In their last 38 games, the Trail Blazers (21-57), relying on inexperienced players in a youth movement, are 5-33. They've also lost 15 of 16, but were a handful for the Clippers, and that's not good news for Coach Mike Dunleavy. "They have no pressure on them, they know they're not going to the playoffs, and they're not playing for anything," Dunleavy said of Portland. "We made a couple of their guys look like they were All-World tonight…. We've got to move on from here." Is this team ready for the playoffs? "You have to understand that this, this winning stuff, is totally new to a lot of guys on this team," said Cassell, who helped the Houston Rockets win consecutive NBA championships early in his career and has appeared in 103 postseason games. "Winning creates habits," he said. "It creates good habits and bad habits, so it's a learning experience. Sometimes, learning isn't easy." The Clippers have learned they still have much to improve in their final four games, players said. "We want to play well and do the things we have to do," Kaman said. "Obviously, the last four games we haven't been playing the way we should. "There have been teams we should have beaten, games we should have won, and we didn't. It's kind of frustrating, but we still have some games left to try and pick it up and get it together again." Of course, things could be worse. The Clippers' playoff outlook might improve if they're seeded sixth, because they would open against the third-seeded Denver Nuggets. The Clippers won the season series, 3-1. "Leading to the playoffs, I think we need to have a winning streak," said Vladimir Radmanovic, who appeared in 11 playoff games with the Seattle SuperSonics. "I think we need that to get our confidence at a certain level, because it doesn't really matter what happened" in the regular season. "It's not going be easy, and everybody knows that. We've been facing a lot of aggressive teams lately. They're trying to make the playoffs or trying to getter spots in the playoffs, so they're already playing playoff basketball. I don't think we've found the answer for that, and we need to find it soon. "We can't just think we're going to flip the switch in the playoffs, because it's not going to be like that. These last four games, we have to start thinking like we're in the playoffs. We have to bring that intensity." -- 紫霞：昨天晚上我托一只蜘蛛來跟你說，讓他告訴你我很想念你，你知不知道？ 至尊寶：你又知不知道？我一直在騙妳。 紫霞：騙就騙吧！就像飛蛾一樣，明知道會受傷，還是會撲到火上。飛蛾就這麼傻！ --

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