Advantage goes to the Clippers

After ending their seven-game trip with a win in Milwaukee on Monday, the Clippers have a chance to maintain some momentum in their return to Staples Center tonight.

Washington awaits, and the visitors have hardly been road wizards of late.

Since an 88-83 victory at Boston on Jan. 14, the Wizards have lost nine in a row on the road, including a collapse Monday at Golden State. Washington, which led by as many as 23 points and by 17 at halftime, lost to the Warriors, 120-117.

Trying to maintain a playoff spot until the return of guard Gilbert Arenas next month, the Wizards have lost eight in a row overall and have dropped 16 of 25 away from home.

The Clippers have done well against the Wizards in Los Angeles. Washington hasn’t won here since a 103-94 victory March 25, 2004.

Boston, which continues to own the best record in the NBA, is a prohibitive future book favorite to win its 17th championship later this year. The Celtics are a valueless 1-1 on the website Bodoglife.com to win their first title since the 1985-86 season.

Appropriately, for fans who remember the days of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish battling Magic Johnson, James Worthy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar regularly in the Finals, the Lakers are the 3-1 second choice.

San Antonio, which swept Cleveland to win the title a season ago, is 5-1, while the Cavaliers, who have been beset by injuries, are 20-1.

The 4-1 third choice is Phoenix, and Detroit, like the Spurs, is 5-1. Dallas, a perennial playoff underachiever, is 8-1 and New Orleans, the surprise team in the West, is 12-1.

Miami, which lost 40 of its first 49 games, is a future book underlay. Die-hards who still think the Heat can win its second title in three years can get 500-1 odds.

Hockey

Florida will play its first game since the serious injury to forward Richard Zednik when the Panthers play host to Montreal tonight.

Zednik, who had his carotid artery nearly severed by teammate Olli Jokinen’s skate in a freak mishap during Florida’s game in Buffalo on Sunday, already has begun asking when he can resume training to get back on the ice. Doctors have said it will be six to eight weeks before he can resume normal activity.

Although out of the playoffs in the Eastern Conference at this point, the Panthers still have a shot to find their way in and have done well against the Canadiens in recent years. They have won three of their last five in Florida versus Montreal and are 2-1 this season against the Canadiens.

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