Kotka beat Bisons Loimaa 87:64 in the Korisliiga on Monday evening, extending their own recent winning streak while the visitors picked up yet another defeat. The hosts finished with a twenty-three-point margin, which is not a result you see every week in this league. By then Kotka had already cemented their position in the middle of the table, three places above the side they had just dismantled.
We had named a home win as our pick ahead of this fixture, and the outcome matched what we were looking for. It is not a massive surprise — Kotka have been the more consistent side this season with twelve wins to ten losses, while Bisons Loimaa sit tenth after nine victories and thirteen defeats. The prediction carried fifty-six per cent confidence, and the hosts delivered accordingly.
Kotka come into this game with momentum, having won their last two outings against Kipina Basket and Karhu. Their form has been patchy over the longer term, but the recent pattern suggests a team that knows how to finish a quarter properly. Bisons Loimaa, meanwhile, lost badly to Vilpas Vikings on Wednesday and have not found a rhythm since their victory over Pyrintö Tampere three weeks ago.
The eighty-seven points scored by Kotka is a solid total, but the defence was the real story. Sixty-four away from home is not a bad scoreline in isolation, but against a side that averages around seventy-five points a game, it shows they tightened things up when it mattered. The visitors could not match the pace in the opening period and never really got back into the game.
This result keeps Kotka in sixth place and widens the gap to Bisons Loimaa by four points. Neither side is in serious danger of relegation, but the difference in form is becoming clear. Kotka are closing in on a play-off spot; Bisons Loimaa are still searching for consistency.
