Full speed ahead

["Stephen Beauregard" <sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Full speed ahead

Nets are hoping to finish series

By Mark Blaudschun, Globe Staff, 5/12/2003

f the Celtics think the New Jersey Nets will enter tonight's fourth -- and
perhaps final -- game of their Eastern Conference semifinal series
overconfident, perhaps they should think again.



If the Celtics think the Nets' 3-0 lead will cause them to relax, they may be
mistaken.

In fact, the reminder Nets coach Byron Scott has given his team the past few
days is of Dallas's recent series with Portland, in which the Mavericks took a
3-0 lead and then squandered it before winning the seventh game.

And the Nets yesterday sounded downright nasty when they talked about taking
care of business tonight at the FleetCenter.

''It's like being in the water with a shark,'' said Scott before the Nets'
practice at UMass-Boston. ''You see blood, you see the other team down, a
little frustrated. You almost have to go in for the kill.

''That's what we saw in Game 3,'' added Scott, in reference to the Nets
pulling away from the Celtics with a 16-0 burst in the third quarter.

The Nets said they do not want to prolong this series for a fifth game in New
Jersey Wednesday night, and were saying all the right things about expecting a
strong effort from the Celtics.

''We are expecting them to come out with a lot of energy,'' said forward
Kenyon Martin, who led all scorers with 25 points in Friday night's 94-76
romp. ''We want to try to close them out as soon as possible.''

The Nets know how the Celtics are feeling. A year ago, the Lakers rolled past
them, four games to none, in the NBA Finals. In their 16 playoff series, they
have been swept six times.

This time, the Nets hold the broom, and they are more than anxious to use it.

''Winning is the most important thing for us now.'' said guard Jason Kidd.
''We're peaking at the right time, but there is still room for improvement.
That's the way we have to approach it. We're looking to win a ballgame and
move to the next series. We'll be in another hostile environment and it will
be tough to win two games on the road. But our goal is try and come out with a
win. Boston is going to come out and play hard, like they have nothing to
lose.''

A sweep would give the Nets at least a week to rest and prepare for the
Eastern Conference finals. It also would be another boost to their confidence,
which is starting to get back to last year's level, when they were surprise
participants in the NBA Finals.

''You want to end a series when you can,'' said Kidd. ''You don't want to let
it linger, because you never know what can happen. We have to approach the
game like we're down [in the series], not that we have another game at home.
Momentum can change quickly. It only takes one game.''

Scott says he expects the best from the Celtics if for no other reason than to
be avoid being swept.

''No one likes to be swept,'' he said. ''It's embarrassing. It's very
humbling.''

Scott reiterated how the Nets had not forgotten last year's series against the
Lakers, or the Mavericks' near calamity.

''If we play anywhere near the way we did in Game 3, we have a chance,'' he
said. If that includes anything close to the second-half spurt they went on in
Game 3, the sharks could be in the water quickly, sensing blood, and looking
for a chance to take care of another obstacle on the road back to the Finals.

. . .

Forward Richard Jefferson missed practice. ''Something he ate,'' said Scott,
who deemed it not serious. ''A bad steak or something. These guys make so much
money, yet they still want to go out and eat a $2.50 hamburger.'' . . . Kidd
easily deflected questions about his potential free agency and any
distractions from the FleetCenter crowd regarding the controversy surrounding
his wife. When asked how he blocked out the distractions, Kidd said, simply,
''By not answering the questions.''

Thanks,

Steve
sb@maine.rr.com

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