The attack never flowed. The defense appeared shaky.

In its last home game until April, the Thunder left its hometown fans with some question marks and a heartbreaking image.

Slipping behind the defense, John Tavares one-timed a feed from Rich Kilgour with 50 seconds left to lift the Buffalo Bandits past the Thunder, 16-15, last night before 8,203 at the Baltimore Arena.

The Thunder (6-1) had its four-game home winning streak stopped and saw its first-place cushion cut down to one game over the Toronto Rock. It plays the next three games on the road before returning to the Arena for its season finale on 3 April.

The Bandits (4-3), who lost to the Thunder by seven goals on 16 January, hadn't played in three weeks.

"I don't think the loss concerns us as much as not playing with the same intensity we had early in the season," Thunder goalkeeper Chris Sanderson said. "We need to get that fire back."

The Thunder, which kept itself in the game with eight power-play goals, only scored once in the final eleven minutes. Buffalo goalkeeper Matt Disher stonewalled the Thunder in the last three minutes, kicking away Tom Ryan's shot on a breakaway and turning back Matt Shearer's last gasp with two seconds remaining.

"Our offense wasn't clicking," said the Thunder's Joe Hiltz, who led the team with four goals. "It was just run-and-gun, and we let them fast-break us all game."

The defense didn't hold up its end either. The Thunder allowed Buffalo to work the ball around the interior too much and left Sanderson exposed at times -- including on the game-winner.

When Kilgour carried the ball to the left wing with 50 seconds left, the Thunder defense pursued in a takeaway attempt. Tavares then crept into an open space in front of the goal and quickly redirected Kilgour's pass past Sanderson.

"We just didn't play defense," said Thunder coach John Tucker, who had a closed-door coaches meeting after the game. "I thought what's frustrating is we outshoot a team and still lost. We have to do a better job."

The Thunder did show resiliency, fighting back twice from three-goal deficits to tie the game. It appeared as if the momentum had swung back to the Thunder in the fourth quarter, when Hiltz and Matt Shearer scored in a 1 1/2-minute span to tie the game at 14 with 11:05 left.

Darris Kilgour put the Bandits back on top by scoring with 5:41 left, but the Thunder's Tim Hormes answered with a diving shot to even the game 27 seconds later.

That proved to be the last shining moment for the Thunder, which could have clinched its fifth playoff berth this decade with a win. Instead, Rich Kilgour and Tavares closed the back door and left Thunder fans with a monthlong memory.

"The principle is you have to take his body or they'll find the open man," said Sanderson, who made 37 saves. "We didn't. It was a great goal."

BOX SUMMARY
                                  1  2  3  4     TOT
Buffalo Bandits (4-3)             6  2  5  3  --  16
Baltimore Thunder (6-2)           3  6  3  3  --  15

BUFFALO BANDITS               BALTIMORE THUNDER
               G - A   PTS                   G - A   PTS
R Kilgour      3 - 2     5    Hiltz          4 - 5     9
Panos          3 - 2     5    Gait           2 - 5     7
Tavares        1 - 4     5    Hubbard        2 - 4     6
Cordingley     2 - 2     4    Clune          3 - 1     4
D Kilgour      2 - 2     4    Shearer        2 - 2     4
Batley         1 - 3     4    Cantabene      0 - 2     2
Stevenson      1 - 3     4    Hormes         1 - 0     1
T Kilgour      1 - 2     3    Ryan           1 - 0     1
Steinwald      2 - 0     2    Gervais        0 - 1     1
Bomberry       0 - 1     1    Shek           0 - 1     1
Disher         0 - 1     1    Tapp           0 - 1     1
Doddridge      0 - 1     1
Rosa           0 - 1     1
Silcott        0 - 1     1

Shots on goal           53    Shots on goal           56
Saves made by           31    Saves made by           37
   Disher                        C Sanderson
Power Play Chances       7    Power Play Chances       9
Power Play Goals         5    Power Play Goals         8

*** STATS OFFICIAL BY VERIFY WITH BALTIMORE SUN***