WITH Bury's game against Holbrook suffering a late postponement, the Ipswich & District Basketball League title was yet again put on hold. And with Colchester Veterans gaining back-to-back victories, they have moved into the top half of the table for the first time this season, putting some pressure on the champions-elect.

WITH Bury's game against Holbrook suffering a late postponement, the Ipswich & District Basketball League title was yet again put on hold.

And with Colchester Veterans gaining back-to-back victories, they have moved into the top half of the table for the first time this season, putting some pressure on the champions-elect.

Stowmarket Slammers provided the opposition for the Vets' first game of the week and were soon down by double figures as Aaron Syrett and Joe Matthews hit six points each in the opening quarter.

Six more from Jules Keeling in the second kept the Vets well ahead and the gap at half time was more than 20.

Nine more from Matthews in the third stretched the lead to more than 30 and when Neil Thompson and Zeeus Stone fouled out for the Slammers in the final quarter, the Vets could afford the luxury of missing ten second-half foul shots and still win very comfortably.

Winless BT Jets travelled to Colchester looking for a miracle but the Vets were unsympathetic as they restricted the visitors to just three scores in the first.

By the end of the quarter the Vets were up by almost 30 with Nathan Syrett this time leading the way with 12 personal.

Matthews kept the scoreboard ticking over in the second as he knocked down 15 personal.

Meanwhile, the Jets only just made it into double figures by the break.

To their credit, Jets stuck to the task and achieved some success with 20 points in the third as William Booth and Gary Carson hit 11 between them.

But there was only going to be one winner and their second victory in a week saw the Essex side move into the top three.

BT Lasers played their final match of the season and moved back to the top of the table with a win over California Cougars.

A close first quarter saw the lead change hands five times with Lasers just having the edge.

Joe Rudd and Miro Juriga kept Cougars in the game and they were soon ahead again in the second.

However, Lasers hit 12 unanswered points in a two-minute spell and by half time were ahead by 15, with Matt Ward hitting eight personal.

Leroy Manhertz and Rudd kept Cougars in the game in the third although they could not narrow the gap to single figures.

The final quarter saw Rudd and Manhertz knock down 12 points to reduce the deficit to 10 but that was as close as it got.

So, Bury have two games to go and should they win them both, no-one can catch them.

This week they face a tricky trip to Cougars and meetings between the teams in the past have been very competitive.

Colchester travel to Stowmarket yet again and will be looking to pick up where they left off last week.

Spare a thought for BT Jets as they visit Holbrook Eagles.

With the Eagles having had only one win since Christmas, could the Jets break their duck at this late stage of the season?

Results round-up

Stowmarket Slammers 55 (Harris 18, Woodgate 10, MacDonald 9) Colchester Veterans 94 (Matthews 38, Keeling/A Syrett 16).

BT Lasers 76 (Barton 19, Szyttenholm 15, Peters 11) California Cougars 66 (Rudd/Manhertz 21, Juriga 10)

Colchester Veterans 123 (Matthews 34, N Syrett 22, Hicks 20) BT Jets 58 (Carson 15, Booth 9, Turner 8).