The Magpies' 50-point win over Sturt on Sunday afternoon allowed them to snatch top spot back from South Adelaide and confirmed Port Adelaide's status as the league's top defensive team.
Hocking told portadelaidefc.com.au his side had the second lowest (behind Sturt) score conceded against it heading into Sunday's match.
He wanted his players to ensure the Magpies finished ahead on that statistic against the Double Blues.
"It was pretty clinical there from us," Hocking said.
"Sturt are a really good side and they were the best team for reducing opposition's scores going into the game.
"We wanted to be number one in defence, so we had to defend them strongly on Sunday.
"The big thing I tried to impress on the boys was the importance of defending strongly and the rest of the stuff like ball use comes after that.
"As it is now, we are number one in defence and we really want to try to work hard to keep that."
Although the Magpies are sitting atop the ladder after the weekend, Hocking admitted his side needed to fix the second quarter blues that have persisted since Round 3.
The Bloods, Eagles, Crows and now the Double Blues have all reeled in strong first quarter leads held by the Magpies to be within striking distance at half time.
Hocking is still seeking improvement in that area in the leadup to the significant challenge posed by the in-form South Adelaide this weekend.
"It was very similar to the West and Eagles games where our first quarters were fantastic and we really could have put the game away really early," Hocking said.
"Our mantra is to get on top of teams early, but our second quarters have been our worst and the boys spoke about it at quarter time."
"It's something we'll keep highlighting until we get it right."
The Magpies host the Panthers at Alberton Oval at 2:10pm this Saturday in a standalone Port Adelaide game, with the Power enjoying a week off due to the AFL bye.
