The Canberra Capitals sit on the cusp of unwanted records and the longest losing streak in their history after they slumped to a heartbreaking 10th consecutive defeat on Saturday night.
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The Capitals were gritty and put their bodies on the line as they attempted to end their nightmare run, but it wasn't enough as the shattered Canberra team fell to the Melbourne Boomers 66-61.
Not even returning to their former fortress at Tuggeranong could ease the pain as they suffered the tightest loss of their fast-fading WNBL campaign.
Canberra has never lost 11 games in a row and hasn't lost 10 in a row since 1996-97.
They face the Sydney Flames next week as they desperately try to avoid an unwanted slice of history.
"They all sting, of course losses sting. But we had a chance in that one … we did a hell of a job to get it back to a three-point game with 35 seconds to go," said coach Carrie Graf.
"We played hard and if we do that the tide will turn for us at some point. But it doesn't get any easier. When you're not getting wins, all the losses sting."
The Capitals have just started a wide-ranging review into basketball operations on and off the court as they search for answers to their fall from grace.
The Capitals were the most dominant team in the league five years ago but have failed to make the finals since the 2009-10 season.
The club's dedicated fan base turned up at Tuggeranong and created an electric atmosphere with the game on the line in the dying seconds.
The Capitals won 26 games in a row at the venue over four seasons before making a more permanent shift to the AIS Arena, but the intimidating venue could be a key to Canberra's revival.
After struggling to fire in the third quarter, the Capitals rallied late to force the Boomers into panic mode.
Young guard Abbey Wehrung played her guts out while old hands Abby Bishop and Jess Bibby combined for five points in 15 seconds to get the Capitals within striking distance.
When import Renee Montgomery nailed a long-range three-pointer, the gap was sliced to just three points with 30 seconds left.
The Capitals then sent the Boomers to the free-throw line and the visitors got the shooting yips as Canberra tasted an upset.
But in the end some sloppy rebounding torpedoed Canberra's hopes as the Boomers held on.
"I felt like the stars were going to align tonight ... we were so close and we had our opportunities at the end but couldn't get it," said skipper Carly Wilson.
"We can't keep getting ourselves into a hole in the third quarter because you've got to use so much energy to get out of it. Maybe they wanted it more than us at the end [when they missed their foul shots]. We shouldn't have been in that position."
The Capitals lost one game by 44 points this year, but have shown marked improvement in effort and determination.
They switched a high-octane defence for most of the game, forcing the Boomers into errors and shot-clock violations.
Referee confusion inflicted more pain on the Capitals as they tried to force their way back into the contest.
One official deemed Ellyse Penaluna had travelled on her way to the basket, but another ruled the Boomers' centre was fouled as she went for the shot.
The foul stood and instead of the Capitals taking possession with a chance to close the cap to four points or less, Penaluna nailed both free throws to open up a 10-point gap.
The call mirrored Canberra's season, with 50-50 passes, shots and decisions leaving them on the precipice of disaster.
MELBOURNE BOOMERS 66 (Tess Madgen 19, Ellyse Penaluna 15, Brittany Smart 15) bt CANBERRA CAPITALS 61 (Renee Montgomery 21, Abby Bishop 12, Stephanie Talbot 12) at Southern Cross Stadium, Tuggeranong, on Saturday night.
