As the sun sets on the regular season for the Casey Cavaliers Championship Youth Men, a new dawn arises with the toughest test of the season to date ahead.
The Cavaliers have enjoyed a stellar season, finishing fourth in the strong competition with a record of 14-8.
This secures the side a double-chance in finals, but top-placed Kilsyth awaits in the qualifying final.
The Cobras are 21-1 on the year and a formidable side with a wide range of weapons and firepower on the roster.
With that in mind, this Casey team is not to be messed with as the Cavs are also stacked and filled with motivation as the underdogs.
Casey is bolstered with seven players averaging nine or more points per game, making them incredibly difficult to guard.
The team has scored the most points in the league, showcasing its ability to stay in contests and put pressure on teams with hot shooting.
“We win by committing,” head coach Paul Mellett said of his side.
“We’re hard to scout because from week-to-week you just don’t know who’s going to score.
“We play fairly unselfishly at the offensive end and share the basketball and that is reflected in the fact that we’ve had all those guys average nearly double figure points per game, so that’s been the strength of the group.
“We’ve got a good balance of perimeter players and inside players, guys that can put it on the floor and create their own shot and guys that are good spot up shooters.
“We can definitely score and when we get hot, we’re tough to beat.”
Leading into finals, the Cavs picked up big wins against finals teams Knox, Keilor and Eltham.
Mellett attributes these wins to the progression his side has made.
“I think it’s a reflection of how we’ve gotten better throughout the course of the year,” he said on beating quality sides.
“It’s their ability to share the basketball, play together and play unselfishly and do a better job at the defensive end also.
“We’ve done well to get where we have so hopefully we can continue that momentum into the finals.
“It’s not an easy comp, to qualify for the finals wasn’t easy.
“There’s a lot of good teams in the competition, so to earn the double chance and get in the top-four is a credit to the fellas and the work that they’ve put in throughout the course of the season.”
While Casey prepares in the build-up to face Kilsyth on its home court on Saturday night, there has been some time for reflection on the season so far.
The cohesion and collectiveness from the team has been one of the most impressive things for Mellett as coach.
“The main thing is we’ve stuck together,” he reflected.
“We’ve had to balance the challenges of kids getting hurt, kids getting opportunities and being in-and-out and the fact that we’ve stuck together as a group and remained committed holds us in good stead.
“It’s given us an opportunity to be in this position to be able to compete to win a championship.”
