Perth’s recent hoodoo over the Illawarra Hawks continued after they came from behind to secure a 99-96 victory at WIN Entertainment Centre on Wednesday night.
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The Hawks led by 11 points at the final change, but couldn’t stop a rampaging Jermaine Beal in the fourth quarter when the game was on the line.
Beal dropped a game high 26 points, including 14 in the final quarter, to help Perth nail down second spot in the NBL.
His performance helped extend the Wildcats’ recent dominance of the Hawks to nine regular season matches.
Illawarra’s last win came in a 96-91 overtime thriller in Wollongong on January 4, 2014.
Casey Prather was also good for the visitors with 19 points while Matt Knight added 16.
Kevin Lisch was the Hawks’ best tallying 25 points and four assists while AJ Ogilvy had a double-double with 25 points and 10 rebounds.
The match always looked destined to be another tight one as both sides traded baskets in the early stages.
Kirk Penney caught fire early when he scored 11 straight points, including three from beyond the arc, to propel the Hawks to a 17-13 lead.
Perth hit back late in the quarter and went into the first break 28-26 up after Jesse Wagstaff hit a deep three on the buzzer. They would relinquish that advantage in the second as Illawarra stole back momentum.
The Hawks went on a 16-2 run midway through the period to lead 51-40.
Lisch was the chief destroyer as he traded silky moves off the dribble with smooth jumps shots.
He helped Illawarra to a 59-51 half time advantage and they continued to hold the buffer in the third.
Every time Perth edged closer, the Hawks found an answer on offence.
Ogilvy added six points and Tim Coenraad five, to allow Illawarra to consolidate on their home court.
It saw them lead 79-68 at the final change, but the best was yet to come.
Another stunning move from Lisch kickstarted an absorbing final six minutes of NBL.
The former Perth guard had the home faithful on their feet when he put Beal on ice skates and sunk a huge three to put the Hawks up by 11.
But Beal refused to be outdone and went straight down the other end to hit a three of his own.
He wasn’t finished.
The Cats’ American guard then drained two more clutch buckets to close the margin to three before hitting yet another to give Perth a 90-88 lead shortly after.
He sealed the game at the death with a deep two and a free throw to make sure the Wildcats left Wollongong with the points.
