AFTER 21 rounds of hard fought hoops action, it all comes down to this Saturday for Scott Balsar and his Kennedy's Tours Shoalhaven Tigers team.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Their mission is simple; defeat the 10th-placed Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles at the Tigers Den from 1pm.
If they do that and Illawarra lose to Hills, from 4pm Saturday at the Snakepit, Balsar's Cubs will sneak into the finals.
"All of us know what the situation is but at the end of the day, we can only control what we can control and that is our play on the court," Balsar said.
"There is a confident feeling within the group, following last round's win against the Comets.
"Especially as we have a 7-2 record on our home court this season."
To ensure Balsar's troops defeat youth league men rivals Manly, in a match he's labelled as their 'grand final', the mentor knows his side have to limit the threat of their shooters.
"Last time we played Manly, we got lazy on defence and allowed their shooters space, which hurt us," Balsar said.
"But we know how dangerous they can be, along with their guards - we won't let them beat us again.
"On the flip side, I obviously want our disruptive defence, set by Luke Smith and Brayden Morris, to continue, as well as our execution with the ball to be around 90 per cent.
"If we do these things, it'll put us in a great position to get the win."
If the basketball gods do work in Balsar's favour and they scrape into the finals in sixth spot, the coach knows it will be a just rewarded for his troops tireless work, not just this season, but over the past two campaigns.
"Our group bought in at the start of last season and have worked amazingly hard to achieve what they have - which includes a banner last season," he said.
"Our first goal this season we to prove we belong and stay up, which we have done, while also turning plenty of heads.
"Our second goal was to make finals, which we are on the cusp of.
"The boys have put all their heart and soul to achieving these goals and thoroughly deserve a chance to play finals - all season they've played for the name on the front of the jersey, instead of the one on the back.
"If we were to make finals, it would be a massive achievement, considering the age of your group and the adversity we have had to overcome.
"We all know, anything can happen in finals, as it's a whole new ball game."
To make Saturday an even bigger occasion is the fact it'll be the last time a Tigers senior representative team ever plays in the Den - as all games will be played at the new Shoalhaven Indoor Sports Centre from 2020.
"There's no doubt Saturday will be an emotional day for me and my family," Balsar, who first started playing basketball at the Den at age five, said.
"I've been walking in and out of the Den for the best part of 40 years - it's where I developed my love for the game.
"There's been plenty of highs - including being five of five banners (state league men (1990), state league women (2002, 2007 and 2010) and youth men (2018) - and lows but I wouldn't change a thing.
"I've got a long history at the Den and I'd love to add one more banner to it if I could.
"It's going to be hard to say goodbye, so it's important we end with a win on Saturday."
Tip-off of the Waratah League clash is at 1pm.