CLIPPERS STOP ROCKETS, TAKE ON ROLE OF SPOILERS CLIPPERS 97, HOUSTON 92.

Byline: Sean Kearns Staff Writer

In the past playing out the string as Clipper meant padding the stats or coming up with an injury just to avoid playing until the end of the season.

The Clippers have found a new definition of finishing the season: spoiler.

While Houston's playoff chances hang in the balance with every game, the Clippers played like they were shooting for the playoffs in a wire-to-wire 97-92 win Thursday night before 14,059 at Staples Center.

It was the second consecutive game the Clippers beat a team fighting for playoff position.

On Tuesday night the Clippers beat Philadelphia; the Rockets are chasing Minnesota for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

It could have been a case of Houston taking the Clippers too lightly.

``We're a playoff hunt with Minnesota and Phoenix and I think those games totally outweigh this,'' said Maurice Taylor, a former Clipper. ``We have two home games with those two teams left and we have a real rivalry with Minnesota right now. They go at us we go at them. I don't think this is the biggest game on our schedule. I don't have any hard feeling towards them so I don't have incentives - just to win the ballgame.''

Instead of playing out the string, Clippers coach Alvin Gentry has set team goals such as going .500 at home this season. With the win, the Clippers moved to 17-18 at home with six home games remaining.

``The great thing about this time of the year is we've still got a lot to play for and teams coming in here have got a lot to play for,'' Gentry said. ``We just want to create an atmosphere where we feel we're still in a playoff race.''

Despite a poor shooting night, Lamar Odom led the Clippers with his fifth career triple-double. He had 12 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds. The Clippers also got big contributions from Michael Olowokandi (20 points and 8 rebounds) and Jeff McInnis 23 points.

The last time the teams met was the first game of Odom's five-game suspension for violating the league's anti-drug policy. The Clippers led 77-68 early in the fourth quarter of that game but the Clippers went scoreless the next six minutes and lost 99-87.

The Clippers led by nine to start the fourth quarter on Thursday and started out cold but the difference was Odom. He either scored or assisted on nine of the first 10 points the Clippers scored in the fourth quarter.

Odom hit a jump shot for the Clippers' first points of the quarter.

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Photo: Steve Francis of the Rockets drives around the Clippers' Lamar Odom early in Thursday's game.

Chris Pizzello/Associated Press