Trailing by 12 at three-quarter time at RAC Arena, the Firebirds put on a final quarter surge but couldn't quite close the gap to their rivals as the hosts held on for a 58-54 win to mark former Firebird Romelda Aiken-George's milestone 250th National League appearance.
It was a thrilling finish to a match which for the first half had been a real arm wrestle as the Firebirds took the fight right up to their highly fancied opponents.
The returning Kelly Jackson was excellent in defence against Aiken-George, finishing the match with six gains and four intercepts as well as six deflections, as only a late Sasha Glasgow two-point shot prevented the Firebirds from taking a lead into the first quarter break.
Lara Dunkley and Macy Gardner was also shining lights in the midcourt, while captain Ruby Bakewell-Doran stood tall once more despite having to shift into wing defence for significant portions of the game.
The Fever won the second term 17-14 but there was little to separate the teams at the main break, with the Firebirds just down by three goals.
Some costly errors in the third term proved crucial however with the Fever running away to a double-digit lead that looked to have sewn up the match heading into the final term.
But the Firebirds showed plenty of grit to come right back at the hosts, youngster Elsa Sif Sandholt coming off the bench to combine with Te Paea Selby-Rickit as the pair scored three Suncorp Super Shots in the final Power Five to have the home crowd on edge.
The margin however just proved too great for the visitors, who'll head back home to face the NSW Swifts next Saturday at Nissan Arena.
