Clippers Win on a Desperation Shot by Johnson

SAN ANTONIO —  Marques Johnson scored 30 points, including 14 late in the fourth quarter, to lead the Clippers to a 97-96 victory over the San Antonio Spurs Tuesday night.

Johnson’s last basket, which clinched the victory, came with 44 seconds left when he hit a 20-foot jumper as he was falling out of bounds. There was only one second left on the 24-second shot clock when he hit the basket.

Guard Alvin Robertson scored 24 points for the Spurs.

Robertson keyed a San Antonio rally that began midway through the third period with the Spurs trailing by 16 points. During the Spurs’ run, Robertson scored twice on slam dunks after stealing the ball. He was fouled on the second dunk, and his three-point play cut the Los Angeles lead to 78-73.

After the two teams battled back and forth, Johnson scored seven straight points for the Clippers to put them ahead, 95-92.

Norm Nixon had 18 points and rookie center Benoit Benjamin added 15 for the Clippers. San Antonio got 19 points from Mike Mitchell and 17 each from Steve Johnson and Artis Gilmore.

“On our last shot that won the game Norm (Nixon) was pressured real hard, so he got the ball to Marques and he hit that desperation shot,” Clipper Coach Don Chaney said.

“We wanted to keep the ball away from Alvin (Robertson) because he causes so much confusion when he has the ball.”

The Clippers’ victory comes after a 1-7 stint on the road.

“In the fourth quarter, both teams seemed like they were hitting good from the outside,” Johnson said. “In games like this, individual plays are kind of hard to remember, but on that winning shot I headed for the corner and saw the three-point line.

“But I decided to pull up and go for two instead. It’s a good thing because the buzzer went off right after I shot.”

San Antonio Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons acknowledged the performance.

“Marques just made a great shot,” he said. “He was well covered so there’s not much you can do about it. If we plan on going anywhere in this league, this is the type of game we have to win.”