Otago Boys' High School remains the early Dunedin club pace-setter after beating the City Rise Bombers in a top-of-the-table clash at the Edgar Centre on Saturday.
The school team prevailed 72-65 in a match of conflicting philosophies to remain undefeated after four rounds of the men's premier competition.
But the Bombers may have provided the blueprint for slowing OBHS' formidable run-and-gun offence.
After a poor start, the Bombers controlled the tempo for long periods, forcing an OBHS side without injured guard Jordan Small into a grinding half-court game with fewer possessions.
Luke Aston stroked two early triples but then found it tough against a physical Bombers defence led by Elton Cotton, which limited Aston to just 11 points.
Ethan Carruthers finished with 15 points for OBHS after endlessly attacking the rim and crashing the glass at both ends.
Steve Robinson's 24 points for the Bombers consisted of four three-pointers, hustle plays and a number of back-door cuts on the baseline for open lay-ups.
He combined with Cotton, who had 12 of his 15 points and an impressive two-handed block down the stretch, to score all of the Bombers' points in the fourth quarter.
The other two games were decidedly more lopsided affairs decided by 24 points apiece.
The Magic was paced by 25 points from impressive guard Hayden Miller, and won every quarter in discarding the shorter, and fewer, University Comets 89-65.
Lee Devereux had 13 points and Tom Allan added 11 for the Magic, as the seven students still in town during mid-semester break failed to keep the game close.
In the final game, the St Kilda Saints beat an Andy Bay Falcons side missing Adam Dunstan 89-65 to keep up with the early playoff pace.
Captain James Ross scored 14 points and ran the show for the Saints, creating mismatches and space for team-mates with his outside touch and slick handling.
Left-handed wider Otago Nuggets training squad member Damon Cleverly prospered, stroking threes from the corner and regularly outflanking the Falcons on the fast break to finish with 22 points.
Lewis Barclay contributed 17 points to the Saints win.
