They did that and then some, pounding the Canberra Gunners to the tune of a 97-57 beatdown at the Lauren Jackson Sports Centre.

Albury-Wodonga opened the scoring after just 29 seconds and were never remotely threatened thereafter, shooting a sizzling 53 per cent from the field while holding the visitors to a paltry 22 points after half-time.

The resounding victory was all the more impressive without star recruit Deba George, who was absent with a family commitment.

US import Cory Dixon set the tone early, scoring 17 points in the first half before finishing with a dominant double-double of 27 points and 10 rebounds.

He had plenty of help from frontcourt running mate Clay McMath, who scored 22 points, including a resounding dunk at the final buzzer to provide the final victory margin.

In George’s absence, swingman Donte Nicholas picked up some of the playmaking duties and compiled a commanding 21 points, nine boards and seven assists.

Starting point guard Daniel Sepokas also showed some impressive flashes to score 16 points despite shooting just 4/13 and fouling out late when the result was beyond doubt.

For the Gunners, Daniel Jackson and import Ebuka Anyaorah top-scored with 14 points apiece but there was little else to Canberra’s offence, which misfired on 36 of its lowly 53 attempts and was pounded on the rebound count 39-22.

While refusing to get carried away, Bandits coach Brad Chalmers was quietly satisfied with his team’s efforts at both ends of the floor.

“Yeah, it was good, really solid right from the start,” he said.

“A good four-quarter performance and great to see, even at the end when the margin was well in our favour, we didn’t stop.

“They (Canberra) were struggling a bit but it was good for us to keep going and finish the game off completely.

“The boys have put in a lot of hard work to make the chemistry work and that’s bearing fruit a little bit, but it’s just one game and it’s a long season.

“Then we bring Deba back into the mix; I think we had the right offensive balance.

“As long as we’re getting a good combination of shots from outside and inside, I think we’re on the right track, good teams have those options.”

After an impressive 33-19 first quarter from the Bandits, the Gunners fought hard but couldn’t reduce the deficit in the second period.

But it was all Albury-Wodonga from there, as the Border outfit ramped up the defensive pressure, repeatedly converting Canberra turnovers into transition baskets and destroying the visitors in the paint by a 44-16 margin.

“We had a dominant first quarter and Canberra still had a bit of fight in them, to their credit,” Chalmers said.

“Our defensive intensity dropped a little bit but we kept it pretty simple at half-time and got back to it in the third.

“I thought our defence was just very clinical, they had 35 at the half and finished with 57.

“Really pleased we just didn’t stop; hopefully that’s a sign of where we’re at.

“Those sort of wins, over the course of many years, we’ve been on the end of teams doing that to us.

“There’s a want there, a need to play possessions out, which was good.”