Haryana and Karnataka shine in Junior National Basketball Championship
Haryana, Rajasthan and Karnataka secured important wins in the Junior National Basketball Championship in Puducherry, while defending champions Tamil Nadu suffered a heavy defeat to Uttar Pradesh. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu also impressed in the women’s category as knockout spots were decided
Hyderabad: The final round of league matches on Tuesday morning saw intense action in both the men’s and women’s categories in the Junior National Basketball Championship in Puducherry on Tuesday.
In the men’s division, Haryana delivered a dominant performance to defeat Punjab 108-87, powered by Sachin’s stellar 28 points and Rahul’s 27-point contribution. Punjab’s valiant counter-attack was spearheaded by Divjot Singh with 27 points.
Meanwhile, Rajasthan managed a thrilling escape against Chandigarh, scraping past with a razor-thin 85-84 victory. Bupendra Singh Rathore was the star for Rajasthan, netting a game-high 33 points to offset Chandigarh’s balanced attack led by Ajay (21 points) and Tushar (20 points).
The tournament also witnessed a major upset in a late-night fixture on Monday, where defending champions Tamil Nadu suffered a heavy 59-89 defeat at the hands of a clinical Uttar Pradesh squad. Ansh Tomar anchored the Uttar Pradesh offence with 16 points, while Vishal V scored 15 for Tamil Nadu in the losing cause.
In Group B, matches have been completed with Haryana, Rajasthan and Karnataka confirming their quarter-final berths, while Chandigarh moved into the pre-quarter-finals. From Level 2 men, Mizoram and Telangana have successfully advanced to the pre-quarter-finals.
In the women’s section, Karnataka secured a comfortable 77-54 win over Punjab in Group A to top the division, courtesy of Nilaaya Reddy’s explosive 26 points and Nidhi Umesh’s 20-point haul.
In another Group A match, Tamil Nadu drubbed Haryana 82-42, with M Kaviya putting up a superb show with 29 points. This result triggered a three-way tie to decide the second, third and fourth positions between Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh and Haryana.
Over in Group B, Maharashtra outclassed Rajasthan 65-40, riding on a strong 21-point performance by Anvee Kulkarni. In a thrilling late-night Group B match on Monday, Punjab narrowly edged out Chhattisgarh 70-69, despite a resilient 22-point effort from Chhattisgarh’s Rumi Konwar.
Meanwhile, Kerala beat Uttar Pradesh 67-49, led by Cloudia Onden’s 18 points, to stay unbeaten in Group B.
The scores:
Men:
Haryana 108 (Sachin 28, Rahul 27, Ajay 23, Mayank Khanchi 19) bt Punjab 87 (Divjot Singh 27, Jobandeep Singh 20, Suhaan Mash 12); Rajasthan 85 (Bupendra Singh Rathore 33, Muhammed Raza Khan 17, Divyansh Shekhawat 15, Arpit Meena 14) bt Chandigarh 84 (Ajay 21, Tushar 20, Nikhil 19, Abhishek Yadav 14); Uttar Pradesh 86 (Ansh Tomar 16, Sanjay Mahakunda 13, Anuj Divakar 10) bt Tamil Nadu 59 (Vishal V 15, Yadesh Kumar 10) (Monday late match).
Women:
Group A: Karnataka 77 (Nilaaya Reddy 26, Nidhi Umesh 20, Nireesksha B C 15, Shravani Shivanna 10) bt Punjab 54 (Priya 25, Tishmeet Kaur 13); Group A: Tamil Nadu 82 (M Kaviya 29, Rithika Rajesekharan 17, Sumithra Devi 12) bt Haryana 42 (Kanika 13); Group B: Maharashtra 65 (Anvee Kulkarni 21, Ruchi Sawant 19, Vedika Singh 12) bt Rajasthan 40 (Ankita 9, Tanisha Sharma 9); Group B: Kerala 67 (Cloudia Onden 18, Arthika K 16, Subhadra Jayakumar 15) bt Uttar Pradesh 49 (Harshitha Chouhan 16); Punjab 70 (Priya 22, Pawanpreet Kaur 15, Tushmeet Kaur 11) bt Chhattisgarh 69 (Rumi Konwar 22, Anjani 14, Adit Kodape 11, Anjali Kodape 10).
