THE Bendigo Telstra Braves fought on to score a crucial six-point win in yesterday’s South East Australia Basketball League clash on the Canberra Gunners court.
On the rebound from a four-point loss to the AIS the previous night, Bendigo showed plenty of fighting spirit to silence the Gunners.
With both teams locked in a battle to grab third or fourth place on the east conference ladder, the Braves knew there was plenty at stake.
Victorious coach Wayne Larkins said it was another tremendous team performance.
"The trip to Canberra is always a tough one," Larkins said.
"Although we were beaten by the AIS on Saturday night, the team gained a lot of confidence.
"The AIS had won at Geelong the previous night by 40 points, so they were in red-hot form," Larkins said of the 109-105 result.
"We went into the match against the Gunners really determined to gain head-to-head advantage against Canberra," he said.
After a slow start the Braves faced a 10-point deficit.
Nic Campbell led the Braves attack as he racked up 28 points.
"Nic’s second quarter was outstanding," Larkins said of the forward’s effort to score 22 points in the term.
In the rebounding duels, Chris Novak achieved a game-high 18.
Young guard Kevin Probert epitomised the spirit within the team.
Despite twisting his ankle in the second quarter, Probert returned to the court and made a crucial lay-up and added several important points in Bendigo’s quest for victory.
Another key to the Braves’ win was the defensive effort of captain Warren Randall.
Opposed to the dangerous Zlatko Todorovski for most of the second half, Randall kept the Gunners’ ace to just 13 points for the match.
The Gunners attack was again led by Anthony Petrie, 21 points, and Jon Holden on 14.
In Saturday night’s game, Larkins said he was impressed by the play of AIS guard Matthew Dellavedova, from Maryborough.
In his first match back after a lengthy lay-off because of injury, Dellavedova starred in many of the Institute’s attacking moves.
"The match against the AIS was a great contest. At 30 seconds to go we were two points down and anything could have happened," Larkins said.
"The win was not to be, but I was really proud of how we bounced back and achieved a really important win against Canberra."
The Braves will be on the road again for this Friday night’s away game against the Southern District Spartans in Queensland.
Bendigo will return to the Schweppes Centre court for Saturday night’s showdown with the Albury-Wodonga Bandits.
The in-form Bendigo IGA Lady Braves had the bye at the weekend.
The Bernie Harrower-coached Lady Braves play Kilsyth on the Cobras’ court on Wednesday and then at Ballarat on Friday night.
Bendigo will also take on Albury-Wodonga on Saturday at the Schweppes Centre.