MANCHESTER Giants must bounce back from a punishing weekend when they travel to high-flying Worcester tomorrow night.

The Giants went down 72-67 to Bristol last Friday then suffered an 87-79 home reverse to a talented London Lions side on Sunday.

It leaves Jeff Jones' side with a 6-8 record and in eighth place in the BBL table.

The Giants fell agonisingly short in Bristol during a last-gasp scramble.

The Flyers had edged the first quarter 22-20 and held a 40-36 lead at half-time.

But the Giants surged back in the third period, claiming the upper hand and going into the final quarter two up at 54-52.

The fourth was a nip-and-tuck affair before foul trouble for the Giants as well as turnovers put the home side at an advantage.

They took a three-point lead into the dying seconds and despite three attempts from beyond the arc, the Giants could not find a game-levelling shot.

Jeff Jones’ men fouled to regain possession with single figures left on the clock but the Flyers edged further into the lead with shots from the line.

Ben Eaves hit 14 and took 11 rebounds while Ingus Bankevics scored the same amount. David Watts was the Giants only other player in double figures with 11.

The Giants’ late rally came to nothing as the Lions grabbed victory at the Trafford Sportsdome.

They stayed close to their visitors in the first quarter (18-20) and were only 47-41 down at half-time.

The Lions had a strong third period to go into the fourth 71-61 up. But the Giants fought back and narrowed a deficit that had been as wide as 12 to just four points with just over three minutes to play.

But the Lions held on with Zaire Taylor’s three putting them back in command as they held their advantage for the win.

Bankevics led the Giants with 19 points and 10 rebounds while Mike Bernard hit 16 in a powerful display.

Eaves (11), Callum Jones (10) and Watts (10) all hit double figures but Lions’ Taylor was the stand-out performer with 30 points.