The Hunters, who are fourth with an 11-6 win-loss record, take on eighth-placed Hornsby Spiders (6-10) at The Brickpit, and third-placed Maitland (11-5) play leaders Manly (14-3) at Northern Beaches Indoor Sports Centre. Both games start at 6pm.

With games remaining against Hornsby, Manly and seventh-placed Norths (8-9), the Hunters have targeted a top-two finish but must win all three to have any chance.

The top six teams qualify for the WABL play-offs. In the first round, the top three teams host games against the bottom three (1 v 6, 2 v 5, 3 v 4), then the three winners and the highest-ranked loser progress to the finals weekend, to be held at Broadmeadow on August 14-15.

"We've won our last two, so things are coming together, but it's the same old scenario - it's a must-win game for us," Hunters coach Darren Nichols said.

"If results go our way, we could finish as high as second, but we're just worrying about Hornsby this week. They beat Norths last week, they've got a big man, Ben Hollis, who had 37 rebounds against us last year, and a whippet guard Jarrad Weeks who's averaging 30 points a game."

Maitland's final four regular-season games are all on the road, but they will take a four-match winning streak into the game against the high-flying Sea Eagles, who have won nine straight.

The Hunters women, who had a bye last week, are sixth with a 5-8 record and will take a step closer to clinching a play-off spot if they beat the eighth-placed Spiders (4-8) at Hornsby tonight.