Essex saw off Loughborough on Saturday to move onto 34 points, level with the Trailblazers, with four games to go.
That game highlighted a slate of five D1M games from this past weekend, with plenty of quality on display across the country.
We take a look back at all this weekend action below, with links to live stats and live streams at the bottom of the page.
Title-chasing Essex made short work of Loughborough on Saturday, claiming an 84-66 win.
The Rebels showcased their strength in depth as five different players scored 12 points or more, led by Luke Busumbru on 18.
The former Solent man was on triple-double watch as he added eight boards and eight assists to his stat-line, with Kyron Martin splashing 3/5 from long-range as part of his 15-point afternoon.
A 22-8 fourth quarter condemned the Riders to a double-digit loss, putting a lopsided slant on what had generally been an even game. That included both teams levelling things up at 52-52 as late as the midway point of the third.
Elijah Bailey (23pts) and Victor Ndoukou (15pts) kept the hosts in the contest but neither were able to stop the Riders' late slide to defeat, whilst Justin Hedley (13pts, 9reb, 8ast) also had a near triple-double.
The win pulls Essex level with Derby for top spot but the Trailblazers still own the head-to-head tiebreaker between the two sides should they finish the season neck-and-neck as they are now.
Loughborough remain in sixth but have Bradford right behind them on 20 points.
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Rebels secured the win against Riders 😤#WeAreRebels #UptheRebs pic.twitter.com/pnw6AXiw9r
— Essex Rebels Basketball (@EssexRebels) March 16, 2024
Nottingham Hoods (8-12) managed to slow their recent slide as they picked off London Elite (3-18) 81-77 behind 21 points from Landon Taliaferro.
The Hoods led by as many as 14 points midway through the fourth before Elite rallied and began their comeback, falling just short as the buzzer sounded.
Worthing Thunder (6-14) couldn't make home-court advantage count as they fell to a loss against Thames Valley Cavaliers (8-14) 96-89.
Thirty three points from Hafeez Abdul wouldn't be enough as TVC pushed five players to 13 or more points, topped by Igor Stokic (23pts, 17reb).
City of Birmingham Rockets (8-13) were no match for defending champs Hemel Storm (16-4), with a 96-71 final score.
Taylor Johnson continued his recent hot form with another 26 points but it was Veron Eze (27pts) who led all scorers for the visitors.
Sunday's only game saw Reading Rockets (14-7) win a huge battle in the race for the #4 seed, beating Newcastle University (13-8) 71-65.
Newcastle did manage to seal the tiebreaker between the two sides but Reading are currently in pole position to take that position outright now thanks to 22 points from captain Lewis Champion.
4pm - Loughborough Riders 66-84 Essex Rebels - LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM
6:30pm - Nottingham Hoods 81-77 London Elite - LIVE STATS
7:30pm - Worthing Thunder 89-96 Thames Valley Cavaliers - LIVE STATS
7:30pm - City of Birmingham Rockets 71-96 Hemel Storm - LIVE STATS
KitKing Trophy Final - 7pm -Â Bradford Dragons 74-89 Derby Trailblazers - LIVE STATS/RECAP
4pm - Reading Rockets 71-65 Newcastle University - LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM
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Main image credit - Kay Lu
