For the first time this season, the Mandurah Magic men’s team defeated a top three side as they took care of the Perry Lakes Hawks on Saturday night in Mandurah.
The 92-84 victory sees the Magic move into fifth position, with percentage keeping them from a top four position.
Coming off a big win against Cockburn the week before, the Magic were looking to carry their momentum into the game against the Hawks with the focus being on their defense.
Taylor Mullenax once again started strongly, but was matched by Hawks’ imports Corey Easley and Michael Lay, while Perth Wildcats youngster Ben Purser also loomed ominous.
Rhett Della caused trouble for the Hawks with his inside presence while Magic guard Taylor Land did a good job controlling the tempo of the game, as well as pressuring Lay’s ball carrying.
Despite going into half time with a five point deficit, the Magic ended the half on a high with youngster Ryan Curtis hitting a three point shot with two seconds remaining on the clock.
During the half time break Magic coach Jason Chalk urged his squad to lift their intensity on the defensive end and they responded, forcing the Hawks into bad shots and turnovers, while Mullenax and Della rewarded their team mates with scores on the other end of the court.
Andrew Bowman was particularly impressive defensively, forcing the Hawks to surrender the ball at mid court while Land continued to operate an effective fast break game for the Magic.
Mandurah allowed the Hawks to score only 34 points in the second half, which was pleasing to coach Chalk post game. The Magic also out-rebounded the Hawks 50-42 as well as recording 14 more assists for the game.
Taylor Mullenax was again the Magic’s leading scorer finishing with 32 points. Rhett Della ended his night with 18 points and 16 rebounds while Taylor Land had 16 points and Ben Caporn finished with 10. Michael Lay was the high man for the Hawks with 26 points.
Earlier in the night, the Magic women fought hard in a scrappy affair but eventually went down to the Perry Lakes Hawks 54-42.
It was a low scoring affair throughout with both teams struggling to shoot the ball effectively. The Magic converted on just 27% of their shots while the Hawks shot the ball at 34%.
Turnovers were a problem for both teams, but it was the rebounding count that proved the biggest problem for the Magic. The absence of youngster Ashlee Sidebottom proved costly as the Magic were out-rebounded 58-35.
West Coast Waves guard Gabriella Clayton was the standout for the Hawks finishing with 15 points, while Casey Mihovilovich was the only other player in the game to reach double figures in scoring as she ended her night with 14 points and ten rebounds.
The loss for the Magic sees the gap between them and the top 8 extend out even more, as they remain in second last position on the table with four wins.
This week, the Magic head to Warwick to take on an improving Stirling Senators, whose men and women’s teams are both pressing their claim for a top eight position.