The McKinnon Basketball Association (MBA) was formed in 1991 to provide access to basketball programs and competitions for families within the Glen Eira, Bayside and Kingston Councils. 

The association has quickly gone from strength to strength, growing year on year in our domestic competition and our representative program, known as the McKinnon Cougars. 

The McKinnon Cougars field both male and female teams from U12 – U20 that play in the Victorian Junior Basketball League (VJBL). Cougar teams are made up of players within our association who play at one of our nine domestic clubs and want to take their basketball to the next level.

To play for the McKinnon Cougars, players are selected through a Tryout Process held in Sep/Oct each year before the start of the VJBL season.

When playing for the McKinnon Cougars, players participate in 3 compulsory sessions throughout the week (two (2) training sessions and one (1) game) during the regular VJBL season (excluding holidays).

The VJBL (Victorian Junior Basketball League) is Victoria’s premier junior representative basketball competition, conducted by the Basketball Victoria.

KEY INFORMATION

• Competition for U12, U14, U16, U18 and U20 representative athletes

• Games are primarily played on Friday nights (all across Victoria)

• Teams compete against representative associations from across Victoria

• Provides a clear development pathway from junior basketball through to senior representative, state and national opportunities

• Athletes represent their association, not their domestic team

WHAT MAKES VJBL DIFFERENT

• Higher level athlete and coach competition

• Increased training and development opportunities

• Greater commitment and accountability

• Exposure to high-performance environments and pathways

The Victorian Basketball League (VBL), formerly known as Big V, is a statewide senior and youth representative basketball competition conducted by Basketball Victoria. The competition adopts the VBL name from 2027.

The McKinnon Cougars field senior men’s, senior women’s, youth men’s and youth women’s teams, providing a pathway for developing juniors to progress into senior basketball.

KEY INFORMATION

• Includes senior and youth league competitions across multiple divisions

• Games are primarily played on weekends, with home and away fixtures across Victoria

• Players commit to regular training, game preparation and competition

• Youth league (U23) helps athletes transition from junior representative basketball into senior competition

• Home games give our community the opportunity to support the Cougars and watch high-level basketball