MADISON, WI – The Madison Mavericks never trailed in their 100-to-79 victory over the Chi-town Rebels.
The Mavericks improved to 3-1 on the season and remain in the top five of the Official Basketball Association power rankings.
Joey Werner proved to be an unstoppable force in the paint with a team-high of 23 points. The Mavs utilized the mismatch of the 6-foot-eight center to perfection resulting in 15 second-half points for Werner.
“Oh, man he makes things a lot easier for us,” Mavericks Head Coach Curtrel Robinson said about Werner’s play. “He takes two or three bodies to take him out and that opens things up for the perimeter.”
Despite an injury-plagued beginning of the season, the Mavericks have not skipped a beat winning three consecutive games in dominant fashion.
Robinson noted turnovers were an issue for the Mavericks in the game. The Mavericks had 16 total turnovers in the game and finished minus-three in the turnover margin.
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Chris Costello went down in the game with an ankle injury. Costello rolled his ankle while trying to explode into a rebound attempt. X-rays showed no fractures and the timetable for his return is set at five to seven weeks.
“Next man up mentality,” Robinson said. “We are a talented team. We are deep.”
The Mavericks lost starting point guard Shareef Smith in the season opener to a knee injury — game in which Smith finished with a game-high of 25-points. Smith’s exact injury is still to be determined and he remains out indefinitely.
Dave Turner found himself injured after taking a rough fall on a blocked shot at the end of the game against Camp Battlegrounds. Turner is also out indefinitely, but it is likely he returns at some point this season.
Despite losing three of their usual starters, the Mavericks keep finding ways to win and finding it easy.
“That’s three games in a row for us right now so we are feeling pretty good,” Robinson said.
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After losing their first game by five points in double-overtime, the Mavericks have dominated the scoreboard in their following three games. The average margin of victory during the winning streak is 22 and 15.25 on the season.
The Mavericks look to extend their winning streak this weekend with a scheduled double-header road trip. Madison will look to avenge their lone loss on the season with a rematch against the Cedar Valley Court Kings Saturday.
On Sunday, the Mavericks will take a trip up to the Twin Cities to face an old OBA North foe in the CEO Kings.
The Mavericks will return home to play at Madison College on May 7 for a top-five showdown against No. 2 Chicago Fury.
