Something has to change at the Yowies and after six winless rounds coach Garry Ball said that change has to come sooner rather than later.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Yowies once again suffered a final quarter fadeout against the Wagga Heat, going down 86 to 104 at the Queanbeyan Basketball Stadium on Saturday night.
Queanbeyan brought what Ball thought was a reenergized Yowies outfit in the first quarter, they had a solid start, held the Heat and won the quarter, the score 22 to 18 going into the second term.
"I said to the boys 'if we can have three more quarters like this one I'd be the happiest coach,'" Ball said.
But Wagga managed to get their heads back in front at the main break thanks to a low shooting percentage, an excessive amount of turnovers and missed opportunities from the home side.
The Yowies were still in the hunt at 41 to 45 going into the third quarter, but they had also suffered a major loss- an early exit from Jono Miller, who fouled out just before half time.
Wagga only managed to extend their lead to seven by three quarter time, but ran away with an 18-point win at the final buzzer.
Ball said there were a number of positives, but added the final quarter fadeouts were frustrating and worrying for the team.
"We held their top goal scorer, Gage Daye (37) and he scored less than we wanted him to, but we let ourselves down because we were not paying attention to their other players," he said.
"It was a step in the right direction, but it wasn't enough.
"We have to start coming away with some wins or it's going to be a real uphill battle."
Coach Ball said he believes his team is as good as other teams in the league, but puts the losses down to a lack of confidence and initiative.
"James Lee did exactly what I asked of him, led by example and was fouled out, but from some pretty soft calls, Jeff Dowdell stepped up on court and did what needed to be done, Gabe Haynes' short pull-up jumper was good and Matty Ball was very physical," he said.
"It's a mental game though, calls don't go our way and we just have to move on.
"We have to adjust, I'm just not seeing that team cohesion like I'd like to.
"We're tentative in trying things outside of the scope we think we can do, we need to take a few more risks.
"But with a better approach things may start to happen.
The Yowies face the Dubbo Rams and the Canberra Gunners after the Easter break.
Ball said he will look to adjust offensive and defensive patterns and encourage the boys to "find extra" in the coming matches.
"A couple of wins will build confidence and we'll start enjoying ourselves," he said.
"The guys should beat Dubbo, but they shouldn't underestimate them.
"And I'd love to reverse the outcome of the last game against the Gunners, when we lost to them by a point, but we should expect a tight game and we'll have to close out and take the right shots."