GHMC Sanathnagar beat G9 to reach semi-finals in basketball tournament

GHMC Sanathnagar defeated G9 71-59 to enter the semi-finals of the BM John Vinayasager Basketball Tournament in Hyderabad, with strong performances from Bharath and Sudershan, while other teams also recorded wins in the ongoing competition

Hyderabad: Seasoned campaigners GHMC Sanathnagar scored a convincing 71-59 win over G9 after leading 44-31 at half time to book a place in the semi-finals of the BM John Vinayasager Basketball Tournament being conducted by YMCA Secunderabad Alumni at YMCA Secunderabad here on Thursday.

Tejendra and Jasim Ali of GHMC Sanathnagar, using their height, dominated the paint to score at will, whereas Sudershan sank five 3-pointers as they scored 30 points in the first quarter to just 13 by G9, with GHMC Sanathnagar taking the first quarter 30-13. In the second quarter, G9 recovered through Chandu and Sameer, playing in tandem to score 18 points, and with tight defence restricted GHMC Sanathnagar to just 14 points as GHMC Sanathnagar led 44-31 at half time. After the change of ends, both teams matched each other basket for basket, scoring 10 and 12 points respectively, as GHMC led 56-41 at the end of the third quarter.

---

In the last quarter, G9, playing a fast-paced game, tried hard to bridge the gap, but Bharath of GHMC Sanathnagar kept scoring regularly to help his team win the match 71-59.

In late-night matches on Tuesday, Freestyle Ballers scored a hard-fought 71-48 win over YMCA Hyderabad after leading 35-24 at half time. G9 scored a comfortable 56-26 victory over Young Men Guild after leading 25-8 at half time. Titans breezed past SSBA, Tarnaka 55-17.

The scores: Quarter-finals:
GHMC Sanathnagar 71 (Bharath 26, Sudershan 22, Rajendra 11) bt
G9 59 (Chandu 18, Sameer 13).

Round of 16: Freestyle Ballers 71 (Piyush 22, Sanjay 19, Srujan 13) bt
YMCA Hyderabad 48 (Krish 21, Saket 14, Aadvik 10).

G9 56 (Sameer 22) bt
YMG 26 (Ratin 10).

Titans 55 (Vignesh 15, Saketh 14, Richard 11) bt SSBA, Tarnaka 17.