Just two weeks after leading her side to the Big V men’s division 1 basketball premiership, Melton coach Julie McCallum has been rewarded for her efforts.
McCallum has been nominated in the coach of the year category in the Big V end-of-season awards.
In her first year in the top job, McCallum led Melton to a third-placed finish during the home and away season, with the Thoroughbreds holding a 14-8 record.
In the post-season, the side reached another gear.
Melton went through the finals series undefeated, winning crunch road games against Chelsea, Shepparton and Latrobe along the way.
Before becoming head coach at the Thoroughbreds, McCallum worked with the club in an assistant coaching role. It wasn’t until this season that she was able to fully commit to the top job.
She’s one of five nominees for the award.
Also nominated is youngster Blake Allison. After an ultra-impressive year, he has been selected in the division 1 rising star category.
Across his 22 matches, Allison averaged 10 points, six rebounds and almost two assists a match.
He was a key contributor in Melton’s grand final victory against Latrobe and scored 25 points across the two-game series.
The Big V awards will be presented next week.
Keilor’s Andrew Kaban has been nominated in the division 1 player of the year category. After joining the Thunder from Oakleigh, Kaban averaged 25.9 points and 8.6 rebounds a game.
He led the league in total points scored.
Keilor coach Steve Toy was full of praise for Kaban’s efforts at the Thunder.
“Andrew was very consistent,” Toy said. “He probably had only one or two of what I would consider quiet games. In those games, he still gets on the boards, still does the little things.
“It was very pleasing to see him perform the way he did. It’s the first time we have gone down that [recruiting] path and it worked really well.”
