The Canberra Capitals have pulled off a sensational 39-point swing in just eight days after downing Townsville Fire 73-67 on Saturday afternoon.
The Capitals came out in front of their biggest crowd of the season with a point to prove after they were thrashed 93-60 in Queensland a week earlier.
Canberra point guard Lauren Mansfield was at her devastating best and controlled proceedings from the opening quarter which ended 17-17.
In the second stanza former Capitals player Suzy Batkovic (23 points) went basket-for-basket with Marianna Tolo (17 points) in a dual worth the price of admission.
Canberra took a 39-32 lead into half-time and by the final change the margin had grown to eight points with the home side in control.
Townsville closed the gap to two baskets in a tense fourth quarter but super-sub Kate Gaze drained a three-pointer with four minutes remaining to give the Capitals a 64-57 advantage.
Mansfield ensured Canberra closed out the match as the point guard finished best-on-court with 15 points, seven rebounds and two assists in the round 12 WNBL fixture.
"I tried to be a bit more aggressive tonight but also knowing when to step back and run the plays, I'm just really happy to get the win," Mansfield said.
"They killed us last week and totally outplayed us, so we definitely wanted to get one back on them, we just had to play with more energy and we did.
"It felt like a really big crowd tonight which is a huge factor in these close games, especially in the last quarter when you're tired, the home support really helps you lift."
"We love playing at home and have a few more games left here so hopefully we can string a few wins together and push for finals."
Capitals coach Paul Goriss agreed eight days is a long time in basketball and was proud of his girls for fighting back from the heavy loss.
"It was a great effort by the girls to turn it around in eight days, they've been focused all week and knew what was on the line with spots in the top four up for grabs," Goriss said.
"We wanted to protect our home court and every time we get a crowd in here they seem to get us over the line, they were great tonight.
"I've preached all season about consistency and that's not just game-to-game but quarter-to-quarter and we were more consistent with our effort and execution over four quarters tonight."
CANBERRA CAPITALS 73 (M Tolo 17 L Mansfield 15) bt
TOWNSVILLE FIRE 67 (S Batkovic 23 M Murray 16) at Southern Cross Stadium
