US import Mikayla Pivec's defensive role on one of NBL1's top scorers helped Albury Wodonga Bandits to a 32-point win over fellow contenders Newcastle on Saturday night.
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The former WNBA draftee restricted the Falcons' Nicole Munger to only 17 points in the 98-66 win in front of a sellout crowd of around 1200 to commemorate the Allen McCowan Memorial Game.
Allen McCowan passed away in 2012 and is regarded as one of the club's greatest players.
"It's one of the games that everyone pencils in to remember Allen and we were fortunate enough to have his daughter Aleira on the team and got her out there and she did a really respectable job, so it's just great to see that legacy," coach Sam McDonald said.
The home built an 18-point lead at half-time as Pivec shut down the dangerous Munger.
"Nicole had been averaging 29 points per game, but I think she had only 10 at three-quarter time," McDonald suggested.
"Nicole shot her worst of the season and Mikayla was excellent and she also had 13 assists and 11 rebounds, it was phenomenal, the way she directed the traffic and ran our offence."
Lauren Jackson starred on her return from international duties with the Opals, posting 35 points and 19 rebounds, while US import Unique Thompson had 19 points and 20 rebounds.
"Unique was under the weather, so for her to come out and do that, while not 100 per cent, is a phenomenal effort," McDonald praised.
"When she came out of college they did call her the 'double-double queen' and she's proving that.
"It was a great win, really impressive performance from our ladies against a team sitting high on the ladder, we executed perfectly."
The Bandits are undefeated with a 15-0 record and given they're bound for playoffs, the fans would love to see the club host a final.
"We're so lucky we get to play in front of that many people who live and breathe our club," McDonald added.
Meanwhile, the Bandits' men completed the special night with a 94-88 win over Newcastle.
The home team blew the Falcons apart in the first quarter in racing to an 18-point lead, but the visitors out-scored the Bandits 34-16 in the final term.
"We were pretty happy being around 30 points up in the second quarter," coach Matt Kowalczyk offered.
"We had a focus on strong defence early and that was the key, we held them to 22 points midway through the second quarter.
"They started to shoot really well (in the last quarter) and were coming, but we made some big plays at the end of the game when it mattered to make sure we held on."
Kevion Blaylock led the team's scoring with 23 points, along with 10 rebounds, while Davo Hockey had a consistent output of 21 points, nine rebounds, eight assists and seven steals.
Captain Jacob Cincurak also posted 18 points.
"It's not something he does a lot of (scoring in the high teens), but the beauty with him is he can do a lot of different things," Kowalczyk explained.
"He can play defence, he moves the ball and he can knock out a three as well, he's shooting at probably a career-high, I would say, he's having a great shooting season."
The Bandits are now fifth with a 10-5 record, with both teams having a Sydney double-header this weekend.
