The Post Buffaloes muscled their way to an exciting 54-53 win over one of the top-rung teams, CCPL Heat, as the Cambodian Basketball League, sponsored by Western Union and Coca-Cola, completed its seventh week of action at the Beeline Arena on Saturday.

This was Buffaloes’ first taste of success after getting the wrong end of the stick in all their previous matches.

The Buffaloes turned themselves into raging bulls in a second-half claw-back after jolting the Heat out of their first-half comfort zone.

A strong third-quarter showing by the Buffaloes saw Heat’s healthy lead vapourised and their defence developing cracks. The Buffaloes not only cleared the first-half deficit, but they began to assert themselves in ways that the Heat felt it themselves and eventually were nosed out by the barest of margins.

The Johnny Lim-Ryan Baker combine accounted for 36 points in the Buffaloes recovery, scoring 18 each while Nam Vannak top-scored for Heat with 26.

The surprise element in IRB The Lord’s 57-49 win over the all-Chinese Galaxy was the margin more than the manner. Led by Kim Veng’s 21 points, IRB cut the early wind with ease but were pegged back a bit when Galaxy raised its performance during the third and fourth quarters with the help of Chankon Wai (20 points).

Extra Joss Warriors are growing progressively stronger and more confident, and the proof of that came in their 52-45 beating of Cellcard Eagles, who are among the very few who could match the Warriors height advantage.

Fred Babida as usual was at the centre of the Warriors game plan, adding 14 points to his name, the same as his teammate Ley Denestrosa.

Marty Sharples was left to wage a lone battle for the Eagles, his 13 points standing out on their scoresheet.

Baskets flowed aplenty in the contest between Alaxan FR Patriots and all-Cambodian NSK Dream. The Patriots outscored NSK 87-70 with Aimar Sabayo, who has had experience playing in the professional ranks in his native Philippines, touching 28 points.

Though Sok Reaksmey was even more impressive in his 33 points for Dream, Patriots as a whole proved a formidable force.