MELTON has been the form team for two months in Big V Basketball division 2, but it didn’t reach the top of the table until its 78-59 win against Maccabi on Sunday.
At long last, the title contenders hold pole position in the league as an 11-game winning streak for the Breds rolls on.
After battling so long to make it to first, Melton (11-4) now has the chance to consolidate and very nearly seal top place when it takes on Keilor Thunder (second, 10-4) this weekend.
After losing four straight to start the year, the Breds have looked a class above in climbing to the top.
With Keilor beating Packenham (10-5) on Saturday, the door was open and the Breds stormed through with a 47-23 first half at Bialik College on Sunday.
Perimeter shooting was particularly good, with Paul Ross and Jeff Crowe deadly from three-point range.
The second half become a bit more of a slog for Melton, with points 1-50 coming with far less effort expended than points 51-78.
But Maccabi never drew within double figures and most of the tension created was from Melton’s own frustration at a lack of offensive execution rather than any perceived danger of a comeback.
Crowe and Ross ended with 13 points each, while Cameron McCallum had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Grant Spencer has overseen the winning streak after stepping in for Aaron Christian at late notice. The bond between coach and players is obvious now compared to the settling-in period earlier in the campaign.
“The guys are getting used to me, they’re getting used to the system I run and just gaining some momentum and continuity,” Spencer said.
“I’ve got some talented guys and just need to work out who our shooters are, our go-to guys, our defenders, and make sure we’ve got the right combinations on the floor.
“To go 11 straight for pretty much two months without a loss is an amazing effort and we need to just keep going from here.
“The boys have created momentum from good training habits. We have no particular person who domiantes our team, so for teams at this division 2 level to contain us on the defensive end is hard work for them.”
Depth of the bench has been an asset for Melton, with Henry Kuo, Maverick Clissold and Shane Moroney all used sparingly on Sunday as the match-day roster of 10 all got double-figure minutes.
“My guys on the bench must do something good when they come on,” Spencer said. “To set the tone for them individually and for the team. If you do a good thing then you’ll keep doing good things. There haven’t been games where we’ve played as poorly as we did today for a half. Maybe three or four minutes here and there, but not a whole half. So the guys have got to be up and ready; no complacency.”
Melton plays Keilor Thunder from 8pm on Saturday at Melton Indoor Recreation Centre.
The youth league 2 men are the curtain raiser, tipping off at 6pm against Camberwell Dragons.
The youth team beat Southern Peninsula 75-65 on Sunday to maintain its top-four place with an 11-and-four record.
