Horton led Ballarat Miners to an 11-point victory against fierce foe Bendigo on the court where Miners’ coach David Flint made his name as a South East Australian Basketball League playing legend.

The Miners had to wrestle for momentum.

Horton found strong support from GMHBA Miners captain Liam Gibcus (17 points), Dyricus Edwards (15 points, four assists), Nathan Sobey (11 points) and, off the bench, Chris Smith (10 points, eight rebounds) in pulling off the victory.

The Miners took a four point lead into the final term, the Braves fought back but the final two minutes, 30 seconds was all Miners – including a Horton three-pointer to shake the Braves off.

It reflected a see-sawing game, which the Miners led early in the opening quarter and the Braves won back deep in the second.

Kevin Probert scored 19 points off the bench to top the Braves’ tally and, like the Miners, the scoring load was evenly shared.

But the Miners were clearly more powerful on the boards, pulling in 41 rebounds to the Braves’ 31.

Victory bolsters the Miners’ buffer on Brisbane Spartans in the SEABL east conference top four.

They have an extra chance to bury the Spartans in a game at the MARS Minerdome on Saturday night.