Sonik Puntamika saw off Gorica 84:74 in the First League on 10 October. The hosts sat 12th in the table with seven wins from 26 games, while the visitors had moved up to fifth with fifteen victories. The result kept Puntamika in the lower half and extended Gorica's run of results that had been mixed at best.
Things came to a head when the visitors looked comfortable for stretches of the game. Gorica had beaten Geliost Domžale 88:69 on 3 October but had also suffered a heavy 86:59 defeat away to Ilirija Ljubljana. To be fair, the visitors had shown they could score, but consistency remained an issue for them this season.
And here's the thing — we had called for the hosts to take this one, 53 per cent confidence. It came off, as it often does when you back a side playing at home in a league where the gap between positions rarely closes without a fight. Puntamika needed the win more than the points would show on paper.
The visitors had lost 108:72 at Scrljevo in April and drawn 78:71 with Mladost away on 1 April. By then, they were finding games tighter, or perhaps the league was catching up with them. Gorica's 11 losses from 26 matches told the story of a team that could win but rarely put opponents away convincingly.
Puntamika's recent form had been poor — they lost to Skrljevo 96:90, Mladost 69:58, and Omiš 87:76. But they had also seen off Marsonia 91:86 and Zagreb 84:98. The home crowd saw enough to believe, and belief is a currency in this league. The win kept them alive in a season that had already shown its teeth.
