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Looking ahead Martin vows to put poor performance behind himPosted: Thursday June 06, 2002 9:54 PMEL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) -- Standing unguarded 15-to-20 feet from the basket, New Jersey Nets forward Kenyon Martin knew what the Los Angeles Lakers were telling him in Game 1 of the NBA Finals: "Go ahead. Take the shot. Beat us, tough guy." Martin took the challenge repeatedly Wednesday night, launching 22 shots in the Nets' 99-94 loss. He hit only seven. Combine those 15 misses with New Jersey's slow start and 11 missed free throws and it obvious why the Nets are down in the best-of-seven series. "I can make those shots," the always self-assured Martin said Thursday. "They give me the same shots tomorrow I am going to take them. I am going to be aggressive. I made those shots all year. I'll keep shooting." Martin made his first shot from the field, and he was 3-for-7 in the opening quarter. He struggled after that, hitting four of 15, including a forced 3-pointer in the final minute. While he finished with 21 points, it wasn't a productive night for the second-year pro who got most of his headlines this season with flagrant-foul related suspensions. It has not been an issue in the playoffs. Martin said nerves played no part in his shooting. The misses did make him tentative as the game progressed. "That's normal, you miss a few that you normally make, you start thinking about it," Martin said. "But I am going to keep shooting. If it goes in, it goes in. If it doesn't, I am going to keep shooting." The one thing Martin might change is not always settling for the open jumper. Given a choice, he said he will put the ball on the floor and go to the basket to pick up some fouls, something that didn't happen in Game 1. Rick Fox was the only Laker in foul trouble with five. Shaquille O'Neal and Robert Horry, who guarded Martin, each had two. Horry smiled slyly when asked about the Lakers' decision to let Martin shoot. While Lakers coach Phil Jackson said it was part of his game plan to play soft defense and force the Nets to take jumpers, Horry indicated he free-lanced it on Martin. "That was something I was just trying to do," Horry said. "Coaches got mad at me because I wasn't on him. That was something I just wanted to do because I was so worried about him getting his dunks. I would prefer him shooting jumpers than to getting dunks." Los Angeles assistant coach Jim Cleamons said the Lakers are learning about the Nets, so veterans like Horry experiment. "If you don't have to guard a guy, or you can give him a shot or find out what his tendencies, that's important," he said. "We have scouting reports, but when you come down and play, it's a feeling out process." The Nets believe they have a feel for the Lakers after falling behind by 23 points, cutting the deficit to three and then coming up short. New Jersey has to start quicker, do a better job early on the boards and shoot better than 39 percent. "One good thing is this game didn't deflate us," Nets forward Keith Van Horn said. "It gave us more confidence, knowing that if we play for four quarters we can compete with this team. Going into Game 2, we are more confident than we were in Game 1." The Nets seemingly have to win Game 2 at Staples Center on Friday night to make it a series. "If we go back to Jersey 0-2, there's a lot of pressure on us to win all three games at home," Nets coach Byron Scott said. "Against a team like that, this is going to be very tough. I don't think any one of these teams is going to win every game at home."
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