It was a disappointing outing for Echuca at the Lauren Jackson Sports Centre in Albury, the Albury Cougars handily defeating the visitors 88-46.
The host surprised Echuca early with a three-point barrage, jumping out to a quick 9-2 lead.
The Pirates stemmed the tide briefly, but Albury continued to pile on the pressure, hitting another pair of threes midway through the period to prompt an Echuca timeout at 24-8.
All told the Cougars would drain six triples in the period, entering quarter-time with a healthy 31-10 advantage.
Both sides struggled to find the basket in the early minutes of the second, before Albury again surged in the middle of the period, stretching the lead as large as 36 points.
The Pirates rallied, making three straight to finish the half and foster some hope of a comeback in the remaining quarters.
The two sides couldn’t be separated in the third period, trading baskets through the 10 minutes in a 15-15 stanza, the Cougars maintaining the halftime margin of 29 points.
With too much to do in the final quarter, the Pirate’s momentum flagged down the stretch and Albury ran away with the 42-point win.
Will Poulton (10) was the only double-figure scorer for Echuca, supported by Tyler Phillips (9) and Mitchell Markby (8).
The Cougars relied on Jack Saunders (18), who nailed four threes, as well as Liam Brady (16) and Samuel Hawkins (13) for their scoring output.
The Pirates now find themselves in third place on the league table, trailing Seymour and Wodonga.
Echuca will get a shot at the Wolves in Wodonga on Saturday.
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