Cheshire Phoenix produced a huge fourth-quarter effort to beat Plymouth Raiders 91-80 and keep their BBL Championship play-off hopes alive.
The pressure was on Ben Thomas' team going into Sunday's showdown at the Cheshire Oaks Arena after they went down 91-82 at top-eight rivals Bristol Flyers the night before.
But the ninth-placed Nix bounced back in front of their own fans to move within four points of the eighth-placed Flyers, who have played one match fewer.
However, they had to do it the hard way after the 10th-placed Raiders won the third quarter 26-12 to lead 67-56 going into the final passage of play.
Cheshire went in front on the back of a 12-0 run and sealed the vital victory with a subsequent 13-1 spell.
Malcolm Riley did most of the damage, ending the match with 28 points along with 10 boards and seven assists.
And he was well supported by Robert Sandoval, who finished with 24 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, and Raheem May-Thompson, who added 15 points.
The Nix shared the ball well throughout the contest and finished with 28 assists, with only eight turnovers, compared to Plymouth's 11 assists and 12 turnovers.
The win was made all the more impressive given the fact that Cheshire head coach Thomas was without CJ Gettys and captain Orlan Jackman, who has now joined up with the England squad ahead of next month's Commonwealth Games.
Jackman and Gettys were also absent for the damaging defeat to Bristol 24 hours earlier.
With Tevin Falzon (18), May-Thompson (17) and Alassan Touray (15) leading the points scoring, the Nix looked poised for victory after they opened up a 78-70 advantage in the fourth quarter.
But inexplicably they fell apart in the space of six minutes with a 21-4 run ensuring the Flyers took the win and, crucially, the head-to-head.
Key to Bristol's success was their three-point shooting. They made 11 triples in total and some huge long-range scores down the stretch, in particular from Brandon Boggs (17).
Adam Weary (21) and Jordan Davis (17) also scored heavily for the Flyers, who were led by Nick Burns in the absence of Andreas Kapoulas, who will coach England at the Commonwealth Games.
The match marked the debut of guard Elvisi Dusha, who has signed for Cheshire after leaving Worcester Wolves.
"I would like to thank the club for taking me in," said Dusha. "I'm really excited to be part of the team, especially at this important part of the season.
"I have seen and heard some really great stuff about the organisation and I can't wait to get things going."
Nix play-caller Thomas added: "I'm really happy that we have managed to secure the signing of Elvisi for this very important part of the season.
"He has proved this season what an important player he can be and I'm sure we are going to see the best of him here with the Phoenix."
