GOLDFIELDS Giants coach Stephen Charlton maintains the reigning State Basketball League champions are on the verge of hitting top form.

As the Giants embark on one of their toughest road trips of the season against Cockburn and Kalamunda this weekend, Charlton said the team is continually building towards the play-offs.

Goldfields are coming off a 137-119 win against Rockingham at home last weekend.

“We’ve made a conscious effort to lift the intensity in the past month,” Charlton said.

“It showed last week when we put up 137 points, which is a huge score, and we don’t do that much anymore.

“We gave up a few ourselves, but sometimes that happens in a high-scoring game.

“Moving forward we need to keep improving on the little things.

“Our best basketball is within reach and if we can keep improving we’ll get there.”

The Giants carry a six-game winning streak into tonight’s clash with Cockburn, who won their previous encounter in Kalgoorlie 101-92 last month.

Cockburn have been without injured import Bryce Burch, the Giants’ 2006 Most Valuable Player, for the past six games and leading scorer Mark Jones missed last weekend’s wins against Wanneroo (105-97) and Stirling (90-85).

The Cougars, however, are still managing to win tough games with a depleted line-up and if Jones returns, his inside match-up with Giants import Michael Haney could be a deciding factor.

With seven regular season games remaining, the third-placed Giants (15-4) hold a narrow two-game lead over fourth-ranked Cockburn (13-6), which could quickly disappear with a loss tonight.

Goldfields round out their double-header tomorrow against 11th-placed Kalamunda (6-12).

Kalamunda imports Joseph Nixon and Corey Easley are coming off a brilliant game in which they combined for 67 points in last weekend’s 114-104 win over Willetton.

The Eastern Suns are also set to regain the services of leading scorer Adrian Majstrovich, who is averaging 25.3 points per game this season.

Giants vice-captain Mark Heron is expected to get the defensive job on either Nixon or Majstrovich.

“They’re a talented group who can put numbers up on the board quickly, so we’ll have to be on our game,” Charlton said.

“We’ve had some tough road trips this season and these are two good teams which are going to be a real test.”

The Giants will be hoping captain Shamus Ballantyne can continue his return to form, while guard Ryan Hulme will be keen for a big weekend.

After averaging 19.8 points through the opening nine games, Hulme has scored just 25 points in his past three outings. The 296-game veteran’s trademark accuracy has deserted him, scoring six points each in the past two games against Stirling and Rockingham when he shot just 7.1 per cent and 20 per cent from the field.

Meanwhile, Charlton will this weekend draw within one game of equalling Jeff Williamson’s games coaching record for the Giants.

Williamson was at the helm for 112 games between 1992 and 1995, winning 48.21 per cent of the time for a 54-58 record.

Charlton has amassed 86 wins and 23 losses in 109 games in charge since 2006.

Article by Jarrod Lucas (Kalgoorlie Miner)