As the WNBL25 season enters the final three rounds of its regular season, the Sydney Flames are well and truly entrenched in a battle for a finals spot.
Heading into round 14, Guy Molloy's side sit in fourth spot with a 6-11 record, just ahead of the UC Capitals on percentage.
And with the Hoops Capital side's next two fixtures, including this Thursday, being against the Capitals in Canberra, coach Molloy knows how important it is to secure victories in both those match-ups.
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"I like situations like this, where our destiny is in our own hands and we just need to win," Molloy said.
"The beauty of the situation too is that we already have the split on Geelong (who sits in sixth with a 6-11 record too) and one win against the Caps will have us the split on them too, which is obviously very helpful for our finals chances."
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Both rivals head into the clash in vastly different form, with Sydney losing four of the past five and the Caps winning four of the past five.
"Thursday will be as much of a mental battle for us as anything," Molloy said.
"Of course, we got the better of them in game one of the season but our team is remarkably different since then.
"Adding to that is their momentum and the fact they'll have a big home crowd supporting them - with Canberra always being a tough place to play.
"But if we're consistent with our effort and stick to the pillars of our game style, I know what our group is capable of and a finals spot would be a great reward for our team for all the challenges they've overcome this season."
Thursday's fixture, tipping off at 6.30pm AEDT, will be broadcast live in 9Now.
