The two associations are the first Victorian teams added to the NBL1 South competition since its inception in 2019.
The Casey Cavaliers have risen rapidly in all aspects of Victorian basketball, from domestic basketball through to senior representative, the 2020 Basketball Victoria Junior Program of the Year award winner has been excelling on many fronts in recent years. A sustained period of success throughout the association, coupled with the boom in population in Melbourne’s south-east, provides the Casey Cavaliers with an outstanding opportunity to showcase the sport through NBL1.
“We are excited to join NBL1 South as it’s something we’ve been striving towards across the last few years,” Casey General Manager Tammy Bower said. “For us, being in NBL1 South is the reward for our hard work – I feel we’ve put in a lot of effort in to being the best in everything we do and joining NBL1 South is an amazing outcome for everyone involved in our association.
“Our players, coaches, board members, staff members and volunteers have done an amazing job getting us to this level and we’re ready to take the step up.
“Casey Stadium is a fantastic venue and we want to show the public that they’ll have a great experience when they see our teams play.
“We don’t just want to be in NBL1 South, we want to be great in NBL1 South.”
Keilor will become the first association to play NBL1 South out of Melbourne’s western suburbs. The Thunder has an exceptional history including a six-year stint in SEABL from 1991-1996 and significant achievements throughout its junior and senior teams. They sat on top of the Big V Championship Men’s Ladder when the season was concluded due to COVID and after being promoted to Big V Championship in 2018, their women finished second and competed in a grand final the following year.
“Keilor Basketball Association are thrilled at being accepted into NBL1 for seasons 2022 and 2023,” General Manager Paul Rovis said. “As the pre-eminent association in Melbourne’s West, our objective is to provide the best opportunities to develop and nurture basketballers in our broader community.
“Being a part of NBL1 provides a pathway for our junior stars to aspire to and a prominent stage for our current stars to shine.”
Basketball Victoria CEO Nick Honey said the addition of Casey and Keilor to NBL1 South highlights the growth of Victorian basketball and the pathway all associations can take to rise in our sport.
“Casey and Keilor have been exceptional associations during their time in Victorian basketball and it is very satisfying to see them both earn NBL1 South licences,” Honey said. “It is incredibly important to Basketball Victoria and NBL1 to see associations shine across their ranks, not just on the court, which the Cavaliers and Thunder have done over a number of years, but also in the community and developing sustainable pathways.
“We look forward to seeing NBL1 South return in 2022 with fans filling up Casey Stadium and Keilor Basketball Stadium on game night.”
The 2022 NBL1 South season will be enormous, scheduled to tip off in April with all teams playing a 22-games.
Founded by Basketball Victoria and the NBL in 2019, NBL1 South is the NBL1 foundation conference, which expanded in 2021 to include NBL1 Central, NBL1 North and NBL1 West, with NBL1 East set to join in 2022. The conference champions will then play in the end of the season NBL1 Finals Series, for a chance to be named the NBL1 National Champion.
