The first quarter was a back-and-forth affair as Ballarat went up by as many as nine points before surrendering a one-point lead to the Hawks after around eight minutes.

That slim lead would be the only one Ringwood would enjoy for the remainder of the game, as the Miners held them at bay for the remaining 30 minutes.

Miners guard Marqueze Coleman was electric coming off the bench, registering 17 first-half points using his blazing speed and fine touch around the rim.

Equally dominant was fellow guard Kuany Kuany, who's 23 points led all scorers in the night.

Kuany played every minute of the first three quarters and helped lead the team to a comfortable lead going into the fourth quarter.

All doubt was removed from the contest to start the fourth quarter as bench duo Jordan Lingard and Tristan Fisher combined for nine points in the opening minute to extend the Miners lead to 24 points.

Ballarat will be hoping for a similar showing from their bench on Sunday when they face the Frankston Blues on the road.

The Ballarat Rush have fallen just short of their fifth consecutive win against the Ringwood Hawks, going down 76-75 at home.

The Rush started the game shooting and moving the ball well. Chanise Jenkins was perfect in the first, scoring 12-points without missing a shot.

Things changed in the second and third quarter, as the Hawks went to a zone defence, stifling Ballarat's shooters and outscoring the Rush 47-32.

Once the fourth quarter arrived, American import Olivia Hackmann came alive, scoring in bunches to help keen Ballarat in the game.

Hackmann's 30 points led all scorers and propelled the Rush back into the lead late in the contest.

Ultimately it was not enough, as a mid-range shot from Hawks Jacqueline Trotto gave Ringwood a one-point lead with 3.4 seconds remaining.

Rush guard Georgia Amoore was not able to respond, missing her last second attempt to win the game for the Rush.

The Rush will have to stay positive despite the loss before they face the Frankston Blues on the road on Sunday afternoon.

DETAILS

BALLARAT MINERS: 22, 23, 25, 31 (101)

RINGWOOD HAWKS: 17, 18, 20, 24 (79)

SCORERS: Miners - Kuany 23 (3 three-pointers), Coleman 21 (1), Fisher 17 (5), Evans Jr 15 (2), Lingard 12 (2), Fox 6, Acuoth 4, Short 3 (1). Hawks - Fennell 20 (2), Gibson 20 (4), Sturt 19 (1), Miller 14 (1), Trumen 3 (1), Robers 2, Snow 1.

STATS

REBOUNDS - Miners 53, Hawks 27

ASSISTS - Miners 20, Hawks 17

STEALS - Miners 7, Hawks 2

BLOCKS - Miners 3, Hawks 3

TURNOVERS - Miners 9, Hawks 11

FOULS - Miners 17, Hawks 16

BALLARAT RUSH: 28, 12, 20, 15 (75)

RINGWOOD HAWKS: 12, 21, 26, 13 (76)

SCORERS: Rush - Hackmann 30 (4 three-pointers), Jenkins 18 (4), Burke 8, Taylor 6 (2), Amoore 5 (1), Cochrane 4, Blower 4. Hawks - Mihalko 24 (2), Mullings 22, Trotto 10, Farmworth 9, Ogier 5 (1), Bone 2, Spillane 2, Ravikumar 2.

STATS

REBOUNDS - Rush 34, Hawks 47

ASSISTS - Rush 19, Hawks 19

STEALS - Rush 10, Hawks 8

BLOCKS - Rush 3, Hawks 7

TURNOVERS - Rush 13, Hawks 16

FOULS - Rush 13, Hawks 8