Depleted Clippers Lose to the Jazz, 113-105 : Pro basketball: L.A. rallies after ejections of Norman and Brown, but Karl Malone then fuels a crucial run. Williams is sidelined again because of injuries.

SALT LAKE CITY —  Ken Norman was kicked out with 2:09 to play in the first half. Larry Brown’s ejection came 15 seconds later.

The Clippers as a whole, behind by 17 points at that time, managed to stay around until late in the fourth quarter, when they got the boot, too, in a 113-105 loss to the Utah Jazz before 19,911 at the Delta Center on Saturday night.

The Clippers, also playing without injured John Williams, had rallied within two midway through the fourth quarter. Assistant R.C Buford was the new coach, and Randy Woods and Elmore Spencer were playing in crucial situations.

That was at 101-95 with 6:35 remaining. But the next 10 Clipper possessions resulted in five turnovers, four missed shots within seven feet and an errant three-pointer.

Utah’s Karl Malone had nine of his game-high 38 points during that stretch, and the Jazz had a 112-99 lead with two minutes to play.

The Clippers saw their three-game winning streak end as they lost for the seventh consecutive time at the Delta Center. Brown and Norman were done much earlier.

Norman went first. Upset by a foul call while guarding Malone, he got the first technical from Bill Saar, but insisted later he didn’t say anything to deserve it. Arguing that call, he quickly got the second from Saar. That one, Norman acknowledged, he deserved.

The Clippers were already without Williams, Stanley Roberts and Loy Vaught already had three fouls and Spencer had two, so they could ill afford to lose Norman. A depleted front line is never good, but especially against Malone and the Jazz.

At least Norman would have some company in the locker room. Brown was angry when referee Ken Mauer ruled a ball had gone out of bounds off Vaught’s hands, a decision that was immediately overturned by another official with a different angle, Joe Forte. The play happened in front of the Clipper bench, so Brown got in a quick comment at Mauer.

Not only did Mauer give Brown a technical, but he came over seven or eight feet to go nose-to-nose with the Clipper coach. Such moves are common in baseball, but rare in the NBA, where officials are taught to diffuse a situation by walking away or giving a calm explanation. Mauer did the opposite.

Brown was madder than he has ever been during a game, he said later. Buford, his assistant through their days at Kansas and the San Antonio Spurs, agreed.

Fury in his face, Brown tried to get at Mauer, got the second techincal and had to be held back by players, trainer Keith Jones and then calmed by Saar.

Referees are only allowed to comment on rule interpretations. But Brown said the incident started over a minor, if not insignificant, statement: “I said he missed the call. I didn’t curse him or anything.”

The free throws from the technicals gave the Jazz a 66-49 lead. The Clipper comeback started immediately, pulling them within eight by halftime to keep in striking distance for the fourth quarter.

“We tried to come back,” Buford said after his first NBA regular-season stint as head coach.

“We got within two. I’m not sure we used the greatest selection of shots, but we played hard.”

Clipper Notes

Trainer Keith Jones is still regarding the injury as minor and said John Williams, who sat out his second consecutive game because of a sore left knee, might be ready to play Tuesday against Phoenix at the Sports Arena.

Jones said that the Clippers will X-ray the joint Monday as a precaution. It is a procedure that examines all non-skeletal parts--muscles, cartilage and ligaments--but Jones said he could not guess if Williams’ sharp pains, especially when cutting, is from anything more than a sprain. Williams suffered the injury, along with a sprained left ankle, when he landed awkwardly after a rebound against Utah on Wednesday at the Sports Arena. Williams, then with Washington, suffered a severely injured right knee while playing the Jazz in December of 1989.

Stanley Roberts is limping noticeably in games, the result of tendinitis in his left knee, bothersome for about the last month but now very painful. “Riding in a car over 15 minutes, I start hurting because I cramp up,” he said. “I’ve got to keep it straight pretty much.” . . . Danny Manning led the Clippers with 29 points and 10 rebounds. . . . Karl Malone also had 16 rebounds. John Stockton added 21 points and 11 assists for the Jazz.