THE Albury-Wodonga Bandits have clawed their way back into finals contention with two thrilling road wins over the weekend.
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The did it the hard way, fighting their way from significant half-time deficits against both Diamond Valley on Saturday night and Dandenong on Sunday afternoon.
Coach Brad Chalmers made some surprise changes to the lineup, with Jack Duck and Sawyer Dearborn starting in place of Deba George and centre Rashad Hassan, a smaller lineup taking the floor to start against the Eagles.
George came off the bench against Dandenong, but Hassan returned to the starting five against Rangers big man Tim Lang.
It was improved defensive execution, particularly in the second half of both matches, that got the Bandits over the line.
Against Diamond Valley the Bandits gave up just 26 points after the break, while piling on 40 of their own in the 76-69 win.
But it was their 90-89 win over Dandenong that was packed with drama.
After a torrid second quarter, in which the Rangers kept the visitors to just 14 points, the Bandits trailed by 13.
They came out swinging in the third quarter though, restricting the home side to just 10 point and pulling ahead by two in the process.
The final stanza though, was as triumphant as it was farcical at times.
With a 1:22 left on the clock, two Lamar Mallory free throws put the Bandits up by 10, a usually safe margin.
But the Rangers switched to a full court press which seemed to startle the Bandits, leading to a near two-man comeback from Rangers forwards Puoch Puoch and Declan Soukup.
In just 24 seconds, the duo hit a three pointer, snared two steals and completed two three-point plays to cut the Bandits’ lead to just one point.
Deba George went from hero to villain soon after, extending the margin to three on a terrific drive and finish, before giving up another three-point play on the next possession.
The soap opera wasn’t over though – after a time out, Lamar Mallory hit a hookshot to give the Bandits the lead with just 13 seconds to play.
The Rangers wound up getting two chances to make a play in the remaining time – a Lucas Barker layup was emphatically swatted out of bounds by Rashad Hassan before Soukup tied the game with a long two from the corner.
It looked as though the game was headed for overtime before Daniel Sepokas was fouled with less than a second left on the clock and the Bandits in the bonus.
The usually reliable shooter missed the first free throw, but made no mistake on the second to seal a victory.
With finals now back on the table, Chalmers praised his team’s defensive efforts, despite the late collapse.
“It’s no secret that we haven’t been great defensively, but to get two wins on the back of our defence, on the road, was good,” he said.
“I thought our ability to smother and to contest was elite this weekend.
“It’s a matter of getting everyone on the same page, when we play good defence, good things happen.”
Tevin Jackson led the way against the Eagles with 17 points, six boards and six steals, while Sepokas top scored with 21 points, including five triples, against Dandenong.