LEFT IN A FOUL MOOD CALLS DON'T GO CLIPPERS' WAY IN DENVER WIN.

Byline: JOE STEVENS Staff Writer

DENVER - Any thought of the Clippers sweeping the Denver Nuggets fell short in a loss that can best be described as foul.

The Clippers committed 40 fouls, saw their leader, Elton Brand, foul out with three minutes left and for many stretches looked foul as they dropped Game 3 of their first-round Western Conference playoff series against the Nuggets 94-87 Thursday night at Pepsi Center.

The Clippers also committed 25turnovers and struggled with offense all night. With the parade of foul calls, the game - which lasted just under three hours - trudged at a slow pace that made an already ugly game even uglier.

"Every time you turned around, there was a foul," Clippers center Chris Kaman said. "Free throws, free throws. Maybe one or two baskets, then free throws again. It just slowed the whole game down, big time."

Even though the Clippers had an array of deficiencies, highlighted by the fouls and turnovers, they still hung around against the poor-shooting Nuggets, who shot 37.8 percent - the third straight game they shot less than 40 percent.

The Clippers pulled to within two points, 89-87, with 2:15 left when Kaman scored close to the basket. Those were Kaman's first and only points of the game, and the Clippers' last.

Carmelo Anthony, who shot 35percent (6 of 17) from the field, answered on Denver's next possession with a drive to the basket to give the Nuggets a 91-87 lead with 1:51 left.

Not many Clippers played well, but Kaman's performance (twopoints, fourrebounds) stood out as one of the worst. He played on a sprained right ankle, but that might not have been a factor.

"I'm not 100 percent, but it didn't affect me," he said. "I didn't come ready. I didn't play like I'm capable of playing. I got off to a bad start, and we got frustrated a little bit. And sometimes that happens."

With Kaman struggling, the Clippers got a lift from reserve Corey Maggette, who scored a team-high 23 points in just 21 minutes.

Maggette, who was 8 of 12 from the floor, was the only Clipper to shoot better than 50 percent. So the loss wasn't all about the 40-28 difference in foul calls, but the constant whistles had the Clippers wondering.

"I didn't expect a playoff game to be called like that because the way it was at home," Brand said. "I don't think they called that many at home, but it was a veteran referee crew. And that's what they saw, so that's what it is."

Brand fouled out with 3:07 left with the Clippers trailing 89-85, forcing L.A. to play without its leading scorer and rebounder down the stretch.

Denver, which can the series with a victory on Saturday, looked to be in full control, leading by 11 points at the end of the first quarter. But the Clippers charged back with a 13-0 run to start the second quarter.

The Clippers' quick second-quarter comeback was a reminder that the Nuggets have their own issues.

They suspended Kenyon Martin indefinitely for "conduct detrimental to the team," and for a third straight game Anthony struggled with his shot. He not only shot 35 percent from the field, he also shot 63 percent (12 of 19) from the free-throw line.

It's not as if the Nuggets are on a Rocky Mountain high. They lost four in a row to end the regular season and hadn't won a game in 17 days.

The Clippers, who had a two-game lead in a playoff series for the first time in franchise history, were going for the 3-0 lead - unheard of for a franchise that has won only one playoff series in its history, and that was in 1975 when it was the Buffalo Braves.

"They took it to us," said Clippers guard Sam Cassell, who scored 20points. "Any time they were feisty, nasty, whatever, we just didn't match that intensity. But we still had a chance to win that ballgame. I dont want to say they were in our heads, but they did something that threw us off."

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CAPTION(S):

4 photos, 6 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- color) Denver's Carmelo Anthony goes up for a shot over the Clippers' Quinton Ross in Game 3 Thursday.

Garrett W. Ellwood/Getty Images

(2) Denver forward Carmelo Anthony, at right driving past Clippers quard Cuttino Mobley, scored a game-high 24 points.

(3) Clippers head coach Mike Dunleavy reacts to a call against his team in the first quarter.

Jack Dempsey/Associated Press

(4) Marcus Camby and Elton Brand

David Zalubowsk/Associated Press

Box:

(1) WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND BEST-OF-7 CLIPPERS LEAD, 2-1

(2) HERO

(3) GOAT

(4) KEY STAT

(5) THEY SAID IT

(6) QUARTER BY QUARTER