Horsham coach Scott Benbow said his side was keen to take care of business against Ararat on Sunday and ensure itself home court advantage throughout the finals.
“We had Ararat in the second game of the year, and we didn’t have Austin McKenzie for that game,” he said.
“With a few more games under our belt and a full team we’re playing better basketball, but in saying that Ararat is very dangerous – Ararat coach Josh Fiegert is doing a great job with them and their young kids are very exciting.
“This is their last game for the year, so I’m guessing they’ll want to come out and take a scalp.”
Benbow said the Hornets were playing some of their best basketball as they approached the finals.
“Saturday night was really impressive because Portland was very physical,” he said.
“We were relying on guys like Jono and Matt Lovel to match their physicality, but guys like Micah Livingstone stood up very well for a 16-year-old, ‘Aussie’ McKenzie was very solid and Cody Bryan was amazing in defence again.
“Mitch continued his hot shooting streak – I think he had another five threes.
“They challenged us a few times, but we always seemed to have an answer, which is what we’ve been able to do this year. We seem to be maturing as a side.”
Against Terang on Sunday it was a similar story, with Horsham dominating the visiting Tornadoes before emptying its bench in the second half.
“We wanted to reward some of our bench players for training as hard as everyone else, and we wanted to give some of our guys a bit of rest because I played them for big minutes on Saturday night,” he said.
“They were able to have a bit of a spell and cheer on the other guys.”
Benbow said the team was now focused on capturing the minor premiership before turning its eyes towards the finals.
“We’ve locked in a home final already, but top spot is what we’re ideally chasing,” he said.
“The semi finals are one versus four and two versus three, and it looks like Mount Gambier and Warrnambool are going to be second and third if we finish on top.
“I’d sooner avoid those teams until the grand final if we’re lucky enough to make it, but whoever finishes fourth is also going to be a pretty formidable opponent.”
In the mix to finish fourth are Terang, Colac and Millicent, which handed Horsham its only loss of the season in round one.
Benbow said whoever the Hornets played in their first final, he was counting on vocal support at Horsham Basketball Stadium.
“We can’t wait to regroup and get a final in front of our home crowd. It’s going to be a pretty amazing atmosphere,” he said.
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