However, coach Stephen Black says moving forward the team will be at full strength once the complete roster comes together in the upcoming rounds.

On Saturday night the men endured their fifth straight loss of the season, a six-point defeat to the hands of the Sandringham Sabres.

"Defensively I was really impressed with our effort in being able to keep a team such as the Sabres to 60 points - until we fouled them at the end," Black said.

"Our performance was definitely good enough to win, but we just didn't execute offensively as I would have liked.

"Offence will be a key focus moving forward, but overall we showed plenty of good signs."

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During the match on Saturday night at the Southern Basketball Stadium, the Braves stuck close to the Sabres the entire match, however, by the end it was the hosts that prevailed 71-65.

Black commended the efforts of new recruits Malcolm Barnard, who top-scored with 19 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals.

In addition Sidy Mohamed Djitte was next on the ledger with 13 points, 10 rebounds and one steal.

"Malcolm has been fantastic driving us down the defensive by creating plenty of opportunities," Black said.

"Meanwhile Sidy has been great with what we've been trying to achieve defensively and his game could've been even better with a bit more luck."

The team was without Mitch Clarke, who was sidelined with a calf injury as well as Kuany Kuany who now joins the team after arriving from overseas.

"With some extra guys coming in it will really improve our depth and give us other offensive weapons," Black said.

"At the same time though it's been exciting to see some of our younger players in Dylan McCauley, Isaac Murphy and Liam O'Brien gain more experience and continue developing."

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Braves men are now 0-5 and in 18^th position on the ladder.

Black said as the team approached its match next weekend against the Diamond Valley Eagles, the plan was clear for what's needed to get a win on the board.

"In a way we've disappointed ourselves as we've had two or three games that we should've won.

"We play well in every game and are super competitive, but we need to start stringing wins together as we have set ourselves high goals.

"Moving forward we're excited to have our full group together on court so we can finish off some games properly."

Meanwhile, the Braves women locked in their fourth win of the season with a 12-point win over the Sabres, final scores 94-82.

Tess Madgen led the way with a thumping 36 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals.

Megan McKay notched a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Braves women are now 4-1 and sit in fourth position on the ladder.

Under Mark Alabakov the women are sending a clear message to the rest of the league that they will be a contender come the business end of the season.

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