One of the best centres for height under the hoop and strength in the key, he's noted for crashing the boards and finding a way to the hoop through traffic.

His forte is not three-point shooting. That was until Sunday afternoon.

Guljas was the hero as he drained a game-defining basket from beyond the arc to lift his Altona Gators to a four-point win over reigning premiers Sunbury Jets in a see-sawing battle at the Altona Sports Centre.

He was an unlikely source of a long-range shot, according to coach Darren Davey. "He's normally our inside strength and he found himself out on the line and drained one down," he said. "That put us three points up."

The Gators got a glimpse into the future with veterans Randy Shanklin and Adam Spence watching from the sidelines.

Shanklin, 40, missed with a rolled ankle and Spence, 36, was not used in case his calf injury flared up.

Davey promoted youth league players Nathan Wapshott and Dejan Soldo and had increased productivity from his bench.

"It's something we've been trying to do as a club," Davey said. "Get some of these youth league guys in playing against bigger bodies. They're not used to playing against the big guys and when they get a few minutes on the court it sort of humbles them and they get a bit shellshocked.

"It's good for them to come in, even if they only get a couple of minutes a game as it will prepare them for next season."

Guljas was the centrepiece of the win. Aside from his expertise from three-point territory, the centre was almost on par with his season averages of 18 points and 13 rebounds.

Rohan Bishop was forced to undertake a bigger role in the back court. The guard did not disappoint with 18 points and six assists.

"Rohan had a very good game considering he was our only shooting guard left and he was heavily guarded," Davey said.

"We managed to get the ball to him at the right times."

Power forward Arnaud Lenferna finished with a double-double 12 points and 10 rebounds, including six boards on the offensive end.

The Gators had to work hard in the fourth quarter to pick up a win that elevates them to outright second on the ladder. "We went into the last quarter one point up and they went on a mini-run and we were down by six points at one stage," Davey recalled. "We dug deep and with a minute and a half to go we managed to get three in front."

Meanwhile, the Altona Lady Gators cruised to a 28-point win over Sunbury Lady Jets at Altona Sports Centre on Saturday night.