Double delight for Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu players performed exceptionally well and proved their mettle by winning the titles in the 75th Junior National Basketball Championship for boys and girls organised by the Punjab Basketball Association under the auspices of Basketball Federation of India at Guru Nanak Stadium that concluded here on Tuesday.

In a closely contested final, in the boy’s section, Tamil Nadu and Punjab fought it tooth and nail to upstage each other. Players of the southern state earned the lead but the hosts immediately caught up and this battle of nerves continued throughout the game.

TN led 46-39 at half-time but from here onwards, both the sides were tied on numerous occasions, keeping the spectators on the edge of their seats. The visitors, however, kept their composure at crucial junctures which helped them wrap up the issue narrowly 81-76.

Venkat Dhanush N was the top scorer for the winning side with 32 points, while their skipper Mrithun Vel and RR Ashwin added 17 and 13 points each. Punjab’s captain Tajinderbir Singh was the main contributor for the team, caging in 24 points, followed by Mrigendra Singh Dhaliwal and Fatehjeet Singh, who sank in 21 and 14 points, respectively.

Earlier, in the matches to decide the third position, in the girls section, Maharashtra survived many anxious moments against Haryana before wrapping up the match 54-51 to secure the bronze medal. The winners were trailing 20-21 at the breather. But in the boys category, last years’ title winners Rajasthan faced a little challenge from Kerala, whom they beat comfortably 86-57 to clinch the bronze.

In the girl’s final, Tamil Nadu defeated Gujarat 100-85 after leading 60-43 at the end of the second-quarter. Playing like a well-knit unit, Tamil Nadu’s players went into an early lead, giving no chance to their opponents to catch up and finally emerged triumphant to lift the trophy.

For the winning side, Heema Vami K spearheaded the title hunt by contributing 31 points. M Noorul Shajitha followed her with 21 points, while Swetha G accounted for 16 points. P Sri Rajalakshmi and Jeffrin A, also chipped in with 12 points each.

Gujarat’s Archi Patel, skipper Ahna George and Niyatiba Gohil fought valiantly, contributing 30, 27 and 17 points, respectively.