Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu enter girls final; UP reach boys title clash

Vijayawada: Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu entered the girls’ final of 51st Sub-Junior National Basketball Championship, while defending champions Uttar Pradesh booked a place in boys’ title clash after an action-packed day of semi-final matches at Maris Stella Indoor Stadium in Vijayawada on Saturday.

Maharashtra defeated Karnataka 71-60 in first girls’ semi-final. Maharashtra established a 36-25 lead at half-time and maintained advantage in the second half to seal a place in the final. Netra Damke top-scored for Maharashtra with 17 points, while Anika Naik contributed 10. Karnataka’s Aarushi Ananth put up a strong performance with 22 points, while Kushi Kushi added 10.

In other girls’ semi-final, Tamil Nadu defeated Uttar Pradesh 73-41 to set up a final against Maharashtra. Leo Jafflin led Tamil Nadu attack with 17 points, followed by V Anshika with 11 and Dhanya M with 10. Tejaswi Khana was Uttar Pradesh’s top scorer with 10 points.

Defending champions Uttar Pradesh defeated Maharashtra 63-55 in the boys’ semi-final to move into the title clash. Uttar Pradesh held a 31-26 lead at half-time and strengthened its position after the break.

Sahil Kumar led Uttar Pradesh scoring with 15 points, while Vanish Tomar added 12. Mayank Sharma was Maharashtra’s top scorer with 16 points. Semi-final action followed quarter-finals held on Friday. In boys’ section, Maharashtra defeated Madhya Pradesh 78-72, while Rajasthan overcame Chhattisgarh 69-53. In girls’ quarter-finals, Uttar Pradesh defeated Madhya Pradesh 68-57 and Maharashtra beat Delhi 84-43.

The championship, organised by Andhra Pradesh Basketball Association and NTR District Basketball Association with the support of SAAP under the aegis of Basketball Federation of India, will conclude on Sunday (October 4).

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The Hans India