Star centre Carly Boag made her long-awaited return from a horrific knee injury to help the Mandurah Magic women to an 11-point win over a pesky South West Slammers outfit on Thursday night.
The 2017 Women's SBL runner-up MVP hadn't suited up for the Magic since tearing her anterior cruciate ligament in the early rounds of last season, but made a triumphant return to help buoy the side to a 62-51 victory.
Boag went for 12 points, seven rebounds and three steals coming off the bench, but it was fellow gun centre Regina Palusna that had Mandurah off to a strong start.
Her hot form kept rolling when she combined with Kelly Bailey to score Mandurah's first eight points of the game, sparking what would be a 19-5 run to set the tone coming out of the blocks.
The Magic would eventually end the quarter 10 points in front spurred on by five from Casey Mihovilovich, who would eventually be the catalyst for them keeping that lead despite a gallant second quarter from the Slammers.
The Mandurah veteran tallied a further six points in the second period, accounting for half of the team's scoring as the Slammers leveled the playing field.
Half time came with the Magic clutching to a 10-point lead, but the South West refused to go away in the second half as they put the clamps on Mandurah to keep them to just eight points in the third quarter, five of which were scored by Mihovilovich.
The lead was down to three when Brittni Montgomery's shot found the bottom of the net to open the fourth, but a Bree Klasztorny layup restored some breathing space for Mandurah.
From there it was Boag and Emma Klasztorny taking control, combining for 14 points in the quarter (seven apiece) as Mandurah extended their advantage.
Boag hit a three-point bomb with just over three minutes left on the clock to give Mandurah a cosy 13-point buffer before stretching it out to 15 points with a jumper, which would effectively secure the Magic a win.
Mihovilovich ended the night with 17 points, five assists and two steals while Emma Klasztorny went for 11 points, 15 rebounds and two assists.
The win lifts the Magic to seventh on the standings, just behind the Slammers who drop the sixth.
Justin Rake
Sports journalist for the Mandurah Mail, Australian Community Media, Fairfax Media.
Sports journalist for the Mandurah Mail, Australian Community Media, Fairfax Media.
