MINERS guard Sean Massey is pressing to suit up for his first South East Australian Basketball League game this season.
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Massey makes his return from a foot fracture and should bring the GMHBA Ballarat Miners to full-strength - Dane Sisic must first be cleared of hamstring tightness - for a clash with Canberra at the MARS Minerdome on Saturday night.
Miners coach Eric Hayes said Massey pulled up well from training during the week.
A solid hit-out in the Miners' youth league team helped ensure Massey be match-ready.
This match carries a little extra weight, being against a conference rival - and east conference rankings are tight right now.
The Gunners, like the Miners, enter the game on three wins from six starts.
An emphatic victory against Frankston last week ended a three-game losing streak for the Miners and was an important step to ensuring the Miners' season was on track.
"The win certainly helps but probably, more than anything, we're learning how we want to play," Hayes said.
New Zealand international Everard Bartlett and guard Anthony Fisher were given room to step up their games when the Miners tweaked their game plan between matches last weekend.
Bartless was named team most valuable player for his 16-point, 17-assist effort against Frankston while Fisher added plenty of bite in his 23-point game.
Former Miner Dan Joyce has been in strong form for the Gunners this season, averaging 14.8 points and 3.8 assists while import Nnaebuka Anyaorah boosted his season average to 17.3 points with two 20-plus point efforts his past two games.
The Miners and Rush are turning the Minerdome pink against Canberra.
Ballarat Basketball will donate $2 to the Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute for each supporter who wears a splash of pink to the game.