Hyderabad, 7th October 2016: The finals of the 43rd Arise Steel Sub-Junior National Basketball Championship 2016 concluded a short while ago at the SATS Indoor Stadium, Saroornagar in the city.
Chhattisgarh girls and BFI-Madhya Pradesh* defended their titles from last year, beating Kerala and Rajasthan respectively.
Mr P Niranjan Reddy, Vice Chairman, Telangana Government Planning Commission distributed the winning boys’ medals and trophy. Mr Aadhav Arjuna, Managing Director of Arise Steel Industries, the title sponsors of this championship, was the special guest for the second day running. Also seen distributing the trophies and medals were Mr Chander Mukhi Sharma, Secretary-General of Basketball Federation of India, Mr M Rajender Reddy, President, Telangana Basketball Association, Mr R Sridhar Reddy, President, Organising Committee (& also President of the Hyderabad District Basketball Association) and other dignitaries.
Chhattisgarh girls bt Kerala 57-48
The winners of the last two sub-junior national championships, Kerala girls and defending champions Chhattisgarh squared off in the final today morning. The game lived up to its billing with both teams sticking close to each other till the final minutes. Chhattisgarh followed their game plan of ball movement and finding the open man against Kerala’s zone defence. Kerala’s go-to player, centre Ann Mary Zachariah, struggled in the early going being unable to knock down freethrows. She was frequently double-teamed which opened up the lane for her teammate, Aleena Antony, who kept making tough layups to keep her side within a couple of possessions of Chhattisgarh.
Chhattisgarh, however, went on an 8-3 run to close the first half and held a 37 to 31 lead entering the third quarter. Kerala’s Ann Mary found her touch in the third quarter, creating second chance opportunities for her team. But Chhattisgarh still held the advantage entering the fourth period leading by 3 points.
In the final quarter, Chhattisgarh were the more accurate team from the field and found easy scoring opportunities in transition. Kirti (20 points) and Urvashi Baghel (16 points) led the way for their team as Chhattisgarh pulled away from Kerala in the final minutes. Coach Rajesh Patel guided his team admirably in this game resulting in a 57-48 win and a repeat championship run.
“This is my 100th medal at the national level,” an ecstatic Chhattisgarh Head Coach Rajesh Patel said post the win.
BFI-MP* bt Rajasthan 69-66
Defending champions BFI-Madhya Pradesh* boys were gunning for a three-peat as they entered their final against Rajasthan. Both teams were unbeaten so far in the tournament. The game began slowly with the teams feeling each other out in the first quarter. Rajasthan managed to put up only 6 points in the first period, but went on a scoring run in the second taking full advantage and poured in 37 points in the second quarter. Rajasthan regained the lead with the halftime score at 43 to 31.
In the second half BFI-Madhya Pradesh* showcased their quality offense, led by big man Virat Dhakad (19 points). Both teams followed a run-and-gun style of play, but BFI-MP* had more accuracy from the field in the second period and pulled their way back into the contest.
Leading by one point entering the fourth period, BFI-MP* kept their poise and held off a furious Rajasthan comeback attempt. Rajasthan’s most consistent player in the tournament, Mahaveer Banjara, led the way for his team once again with 29 points. But it wasn’t enough, as BFI-MP* pulled off a 3-point victory and were crowned 3-time champions.
Final Standings
| Girls | Boys |
| 1. Chhattisgarh | 1. BFI-Madhya Pradesh |
| 2. Kerala | 2. Rajasthan |
| 3. Tamil Nadu | 3. Haryana |
| 4. Maharashtra | 4. Andhra Pradesh |
| 5. Rajasthan | 5. Telangana |
| 6. Uttar Pradesh | 6. Chhattisgarh |
| 7. Karnataka | 7. Uttar Pradesh |
| 8. BFI-Madhya Pradesh* | 8. Punjab |
| 9. Delhi | 9. Maharashtra |
| 10. Punjab | 10. Odisha |
RESULTS FROM Day 7 (7th October 2016)
Girls:
Finals
- Chhattisgarh (Kirti 20, Urvashi Baghel 16) bt Kerala (Ann Mary Zachariah 19, Aleena Antony 8) 57-48 (18-16, 19-15, 8-11, 12-6)
3-4 Classification Match
- Tamil Nadu (Nitika A 19, Sathya K 19, Sree Varshini J 18) btMaharashtra (Siya Deodhar 18, Chaitaali Bafna 14) 70-50 (16-14, 14-7, 27-16, 13-13)
Boys:
Level 1
Finals
- BFI-Madhya Pradesh (Virat Dhakad 19, Aman Negi 13) bt Rajasthan(Mahaveer Banjara 29, Kamal Singh 10) 69-66 (14-6, 17-37, 24-11, 14-12)
3-4 Classification Match
- Haryana (Gourav 19, Depender 11, Sahil 11, Vikas 10) bt Andhra Pradesh (Shaik Ahmed 12, Nayeem Pranav 8) 73-42 (17-6, 25-10, 12-19, 19-7)
