Brighton Bears have been told there will be no excuses for failing to pick up a win double this weekend to put their title bid back on track.

Bears stage back-to-back British League games at the Triangle against Plymouth Raiders tomorrow and Birmingham Bullets on Sunday (both 7pm).

They will be expected to pick up two wins and bounce back from last Sunday's poor first half at Milton Keynes which sent them to only their fourth league defeat of the season.

The last three of those setbacks have all come on the second nights of double-headers.

Skipper Yorick Williams admits there is a temptation to concentrate on the first game of a double-header and let the second take care of itself.

He added: "We played Towers last Saturday and our game plan was step off them and allow them to shoot because they're not a great shooting team.

"We focussed so much on Towers and we were a little lax against Milton Keynes.

"They came out ready to shoot the ball. Take nothing away from them. I just think we need a more in-depth review of the teams we're playing in the future and not take them so lightly.

"The double-headers are tough but to use them as an excuse would be stupid.

"We've just got to be mentally tough and get through it."

Coach Nick Nurse echoes those sentiments. He said: "Everybody talks about how tough these weekends are and you can start using it as an excuse."

Bears' defeat to the Lions has got fans across the country relishing a five-way title battle, especially those in the north east, where Newcastle Eagles are on a good run.

Williams, though, insists it is far too early to think about the title.

The Bears captain, slowly heading back to full fitness after a shoulder injury, said: "We're in a good position to try to win the league again but to predict what will happen is premature.

"We got beat by Milton Keynes in a game we should have won.

"Maybe we were a little lax, maybe we didn't make some shots, there are 1,001 reasons, but Milton Keynes had a great game.

"They must have missed only two threes out of 25 they took.

"We've got some easier games coming, though, and we should get some distance pretty soon."

Williams' somewhat exaggerated impression of Milton Keynes' three-point shooting offers a good idea of what it must have felt like to be on the receiving end.

Lions' haul of 15 threes was the most any team has managed against Bears this season.

They came from 33 attempts, meaning Thames Valley are still the only to team to top 50 per cent from outside the arc against Brighton when they converted nine of 17 at Bracknell earlier this month.

By contrast, Plymouth guard Gavin Love put up the worst individual three-point figures of the season against Bears when he missed eight out of eight at the Brighton Centre in December.

Bears won by 40 that night against a travel-weary Raiders outfit. A five-point victory in the BBL Cup better reflects the progress made by Gary Stronach's men since joining the league this season.

They are statistically the best defensive team in the league, which is largely due to having the top rebounder in Terrence Durham and top shot blocker in Gerrick Morris.

Williams said: "Plymouth have come on in strides over the year. They surprise me every time I see them."