Melbourne Boomers forward Alice Kunek has played through more Australia Day weekends than she can remember.
As a junior with Eltham Wildcats, Kunek would be driven around between stadiums while playing in the annual Eltham-Dandenong Australia Day tournament that organisers believe is the biggest junior five-on-five tournament in the world. 
This year's tournament has 1305 teams playing in 30 basketball stadiums across Melbourne with Victorian Junior Basketball League clubs providing the bulk of the 12,000 players. Iinterstate and local club sides and access-for-all-abilities players will also compete.
Kunek is years removed from playing in the tournament but her Boomers and the Dandenong Rangers hope to make their Melbourne derby games an annual event on Australia Day eve, starting at the State Basketball Centre on Monday night.
The Boomers and game sponsor Basketball Victoria plan to make the night a celebration of Victorian basketball with representatives from all 153 associations invited to the game and junior players wearing their club singlets offered free entry.
The two clubs want Australia Day eve to become their equivalent to the AFL's Anzac Day and the Boomers hope to draw a club record crowd.
"It's huge for us - our finals chances are pretty slim but our club has put so much work in this year to build our crowds so we need to show them something for all their work," Kunek said.
The Rangers have already won the Michele Timms Cup after winning their previous two meetings and could take a big step towards making the top four if they beat Adelaide Lightning at Dandenong on Friday night and follow up with a win over the Boomers.
Eltham chief executive Greg Jeffers said tournament organisers supported the WNBL game being on the end of the tournament, which starts on Thursday night and ends late on Sunday night.
"Both Dandenong and our association will advertise Dandenong's home game with Adelaide on Friday night and Monday night's game," Jeffers said.
The Boomers will play Dandenong Rangers at the State Basketball Centre at 7.30 pm on Monday.