China win third successive FIBA Asia U18 Championship in Doha; Disappointing India finish last

While at the senior level, Iran had replaced China as Asia's most dominant side in recent years, the Chinese showed another glimpse of why their future stars might be ready to reclaim their nation's hoops honour. For the third consecutive time, China won the FIBA Asia U18 Championship, hoisting the title in the tournament's 23rd iteration in Doha (Qatar) after a convincing victory over Iran in the final. China played fantastic basketball through the course of the 10-day tournament and made this their 11th victory overall in Asia's most prestigious junior basketball tournament.

China, who suffered a close call in winning the gold in Ulaanbaatar in an overtime game against Korea two years ago, had no such troubles this time around. They dominated the final early, breaking out to a 16-0 scoring run in the first quarter and holding on to a huge 36-19 lead by halftime. China kept their command on the game in the second half and had turned the game into a blowout before the beginning of the final quarter. China's most-accomplished young player Zhou Qi only made an appearance in the second quarter, by when his team had already grasped on to complete control of the game. Zhou still ended up with a game-high 16 points to lead his side to victory.

2012's silver-medalists Korea had to settle for Bronze as they bounced from an early deficit to beat Chinese Taipei 70-58 on Thursday. Korea's Kyongwon Kim was unstoppable, beasting his way to 26 points and 17 rebounds to lead his side to victory.

Earlier on the semi-finals, China exorcised the ghosts of recent senior-team defeats to Chinese Taipei by easily handling their neighbours 92-50. Chinese Taipei had no answer for China's duo of Rui Zhao (19) and Yuchen Zou (16), while Zhou Qi contributed 13 points and 17 rebounds off the bench. Only Yung-Cheng Sun (16) cracked double figures in scoring for Taipei. Iran were led by Navid Rezaeifar (18) and Mohammad Yousuf Vand (17) as they bounced back from a double-digit deficit at halftime to completely dominating the third quarter against Korea en route to a 78-60 semi-final win. Hyunwoo Jeon led with 16 points for the Koreans in the loss.

While the Chinese celebrated in Qatar, India's under-18 dream of continuing the same Cinderella success of their seniors was shot down early in the competition. After stuttering in qualifiers against Sri Lanka, India were placed in Group A of the tournament with China, hosts Qatar, and Malaysia. Despite the presence of the tournament's favourites China, there were hopes that good performances against the other two teams in the group could help see India go further than the past in the tournament.

Alas, India's performances dipped even further from their 10th place finish at the same tournament two years ago. India started off their campaign against the hosts Qatar. But despite a neck-to-neck first quarter, India were completely dominated in the second, being outscored 30-6 by their opponents. Down by 25 points at halftime, India pressed hard in the second half to make a comeback, but the damage had already been done. Qatar's Abdulrahman Mohammad Saad was unstoppable, tallying a breathtaking statline of 40 points, eight assists, and six rebounds against India. Abdelrahman Rehia Abdelhaleem added 26 and 10 rebounds as the duo paced the hosts to a 86-73 victory. Mahipal Singh had 20 points, six rebounds, and five assists for India in a losing cause.

India got their first and only win of the tournament against Malaysia early the next day. Although India started slow and turned the ball over several times, they bounced back from a small deficit in the first quarter to take control of the rest of the game. The duo of Gurvinder Singh Gill (24 points and 17 rebounds) and Mahipal Singh (22 points and seven rebounds) paced India to a 73-64 win. Yi Hou Wong scored 17 for Malaysia off the bench.

A month ago, China's Zhou Qi was part of the team which were surprisingly beaten in a historic win for India's senior squad at the FIBA Asia Cup. This time, Zhou Qi and the junior side were not messing around and went out to seek redemption. China dominated India on all fronts from the opening tip to the final buzzer, blowing out the Indians for a sixty-point victory. The final scoreline read 100-40 in China's favour, a lop-sided result that would come to haunt the Indians a few hours later. Zhou Qi paced the way with 21 points and seven rebounds for his side while Yuchen Zou added 19 and nine.

Right after India's loss to China, Malaysia played inspired basketball against the hosts Qatar to defeat them 78-70, and thus won their first-ever contest in the U18 FIBA ABC. This victory left India, Malaysia, and Qatar all tied in points behind China in Group A, with only two of teams able to progress and join the Chinese in the tournament's second round. Unfortunately, due to their worse point differential, India were the odd ones out. Despite their victory over Malaysia, India would finish fourth in their group and their tournament ended in sudden, heartbreaking fashion.

Because they didn't qualify for the Second Round, India played no further games and were adjudged to finish 13th in the tournament, tied with Iraq for last place (there was no 13/14th place playoff).

India also suffered some distraction when FIBA's 'No Headgear' policy sprung controversy again. India's Anmol Singh was made to remove his turban during warm-up of India's first game against Qatar. In their second game against Malaysia, Anmol was allowed to play with his turban for the first 10 minutes, before FIBA officials asked him to remove his turban again. The latest incident occurred a little over a month after FIBA forced two of India's senior team Sikh players - Amrit Pal Singh and Amjyot Singh - to remove their turbans during the FIBA Asia Cup. Back at home, the outraged Basketball Federation of India (BFI) once again complained to FIBA for this discriminatory policy and urged them to change the rules.

The tournament was a disappointing finish for a team which had the chance to prove that India's future could continue the optimism that basketball in the country had recently felt all around. While this team definitely had some talent, they showed a lack of maturity and experience, especially when they found it difficult to counter long periods of pressure and scoring runs by their opponents. There is no easy solution for this except the same thing that coaches and media in India have harped on for years: all our teams need more quality games to give them more experience of high-level play so they are better prepared for all international basketball situations in the future.

Captain Gurvinder Singh Gill (aka "Gary") finished as the team's leading scorer with 17 points per game and is a sure-shot to eventually graduate to the senior side in a few years. Another rising young talent - Narender - led the entire tournament fray in assists with 6.3 assists per game. He also finished top five in three-point percentage. Gill was a top five score in the championship. Of course, all of these numbers should be taken with a grain of salt since India only played three games.

Apart from the win over Malaysia, there won't be any other positive memories for Coach Jora Singh and his side to bring back from Doha. But just like we hope to use positive results as a pedestal to propel ourselves higher, let's hope that this negative result can be used as motivation for all the players involved to bounce back stronger in the future.

2014 FIBA Asia U18 Championship - Final Standings

• 1. China
  
• 2. Iran
  
• 3. Korea
  
• 4. Chinese Taipei
  
• 5. Philippines
  

India in Group A with China, Qatar, & Malaysia at 23rd FIBA Asia U18 Championship

The luck of the draw has placed India's Junior Men's Basketball team in Group A alongside holders China, hosts Qatar, and Malaysia in the Preliminary Round of the 23rd FIBA Asia U18 Championship, set to be held in Doha (Qatar) from August 19-28. The tournament will feature 15 total teams divided into four groups and will primarily be held at the Al-Gharafa Stadium in Doha.

India are the only representatives from South Asia at the tournament, and qualified after defeating neighbours Bangladesh and Sri Lanka at the South Asian qualifiers on home soil in Bengaluru last month.

A few days ago, India finalized the 12-member roster for this tournament, after Senior Head Coach Scott Flemming made some changes to the team that showed unexpected hiccups in the qualifier against Sri Lanka. But two of India's top junior players - Mahipal Singh and Gurvinder Singh Gill - figure to continue as the talisman to carry India's hopes forward at the tournament in Qatar.

While Qatar was chosen as the host for this championship months ago, the Qatar Basketball Federation (QBF) pulled out as hosts some days ago, leaving FIBA briefly in the hunt for a new location and possibly postpone the dates of the tournament. But a few days later, without further explanation, the QBF changed their minds and opted in again, with the tournament and the dates getting back to their earlier scheduled programme.

Here is the complete Preliminary Round draw for the 23rd FIBA Asia U18 Championship:

• Group A: China, India, Malaysia, Qatar.
  
• Group B: Korea, Philippines, Jordan.
  
• Group C: Iran, Kazakhstan, Bahrain, Kuwait.
  
• Group D: Japan, Chinese Taipei, Iraq, Hong Kong.
  

Three teams from each group will qualify for the Second Round of the tournament, where they will also carry forward their points from the preliminary round. All teams from Group B qualify; the 16th qualifying team in the tournament - Lebanon - have pulled out from participation.

Here is India's Preliminary Round Schedule All timings IST:

• Aug 19, 2014 - 7:30 PM - India vs. Qatar
  
• Aug 20, 2014 - 1:30 PM - Malaysia vs. India.
  
• Aug 21, 2014 - 1:30 PM - China vs. India.
  

Photo courtesy: Ekalavyas

The previous edition of this tournament was held two years ago in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, where China won a thrilling finale by two points against Korea after overcoming a large deficit. China have won this trophy a record 10 times already and will count themselves among the favourites again. The top teams in all of the other groups - Korea, Iran, and Japan - will all have their eyes on the prize as well.

India finished 10th in Mongolia after qualifying from the preliminary group stage but being eliminated in the second round. The previous tournament will be remembered for several impressive breakout performances by India's Palpreet Singh Brar, who is now a member of the senior team.

China will of course be India's toughest early challenge. But head coach Jora Singh will be hoping that perhaps the under-18s can take inspiration from India's Senior Men's team, who performed a wonder at Wuhan a few weeks ago at the 5th FIBA Asia Cup, defeating China for the first time in their international basketball history, and did so on their home court. Even if India are unable to pull off another memorable upset, they have a legitimate chance of finishing at second place in this group. Neither Malaysia or Qatar - India's other two preliminary round opponents - qualified for championship in 2012, and India could have a slight edge over both teams at the tournament in a couple of weeks. Their opening game is against the hosts Qatar, and India will have to defeat not just the players on court but also overcome the home support.

12 teams will be divided into two groups of six in the second round, and if India can qualify for this group, they will play three more games within their new group. The top four teams from each second round group will then qualify for the Quarter-Final and into the knockout stage of the tournament.

Since 1972, India have only managed one top eight finish in the U18 FIBA ABC, 10 years ago when they finished seventh on their home floor in Bengaluru. A top two finish in the preliminary round group this time around could give India a good start for a potential Quarter-Final visit. India have a real chance at improving on their 10th place standing two years ago. The Senior team has already displayed that Indian basketball is on a rise and will continue to play confidently against all comers; now, it is the Juniors' turn to shine and to show that the future can be even brighter than the present.

India finalizes Junior Men's team for U18 FIBA Asia Championship

Nearly a month ago, India's Junior Men's squad trumped South Asian opponents Bangladesh and Sri Lanka on home soil to qualify for the U18 FIBA Asia Championship. The championship was scheduled to be held in Doha (Qatar) from August 19-29, and India's juniors were set to further hone their game through a preparatory camp at the SAI Center in Aurangabad, Maharashtra.

But a lot has changed over the past few weeks, and with a reshuffle at the training camp, India has confirmed several new faces to represent the national squad for the FIBA Asia championship. But now, the setting of the championship itself has been changed, creating a haze of uncertainty for the squad as they prepare for the tournament.

Photo courtesy: Ekalavyas

Head Coach of India's Senior Men's team Scott Flemming was busy with the seniors and wasn't involved in coaching the under-18s qualifying triumphs in Bengaluru last month. But after guiding the National Senior side to a seventh-place finish at the FIBA Asia Cup in Wuhan a few weeks ago, Flemming lent some of his time to the juniors, attending the camp in Aurangabad, and contributing to several changes in the final roster.

As Amit Sampat reported on the Times of India yesterday, Flemming's changes to the squad came as a reaction to India's performances in the qualifiers, particularly their struggles in the win over Sri Lanka. After a strenuous seven-day session with the probables - reported Sampat - Flemming along with other national selectors finalized the team with four new players.

Here is India's U18 Roster for the FIBA Asia U18 Championship

• Samson Sandhu Singh (Maharashtra)
  
• Narender (Delhi)
  
• Gaurav Ohlan (Delhi)
  
• Sunil (Delhi)
  
• Gurvinder Singh Gill (Punjab)
  
• Anmol Singh (Punjab)
  
• Akashdeep Hazra (Punjab)
  
• Dildar Singh Brar (Punjab)
  
• Arshpreet Singh Bhullar (Punjab)
  
• Pardeep (Haryana)
  
• Akhil AR (Kerala)
  
• Mahipal Singh (Rajasthan)
  
• Head coach: Jora Singh
  
• Coach: Paramdeep Singh
  

Via The Times of India:

On the seven-day work out Flemming said, "I was able to work with our U-18 national team last week. There are some good individual players in this team. It is a matter of continuing to work together and becoming one unit on both ends of the floor. We are trying to find a good balance of fast break basketball while still being patient in our half court offense."

Satisfied with the progress he added, "As with our senior team, defense is the key though. When the shots aren't falling they can always play good defense and rebound the basketball. I think they are making some good progress."

Samson Sandhu Singh, Akhil AR, Arshpreet Singh Bhullar, and Akashdeep Hazra are the new names added to the squad. Prudhvi Reddy - the trail blazer who honed his game in Barcelona, Spain before returning to India for the U18 SABA Qualifiers - was omitted from the squad. Top performers like Mahipal Singh and Gurvinder Singh Gill returned to the final 12 and will have the responsibility of being the team's leaders.

But instead of heading out to Qatar next week, the team will now undergo one more preparatory camp. This is because Qatar Basketball Federation pulled out as hosts of the tournament a few days ago, and now, FIBA Asia is in search for a new host for before announcing a new location and dates for the championship.

India trumps South Asian opponents to qualify for 23rd U18 FIBA Asia Championship

For several years, there have been two unspoken guarantees for India's international basketball scenario. The first is that India is the undisputed 'big brother' in the South Asian region, and can pretty much dominate its neighbours without breaking much of a sweat. The second is that, as the South Asian representative against the rest of Asia's big boys, the tables are turned when India takes part in big Asian tournaments. India become the minnows, and they suffer the same type of blowout losses that they have been delivering to their neighbours from South Asia.

Photo courtesy: Ekalavyas

To take the next step up towards making improvements in basketball, India has hopes to overturn the second 'unspoken guanrantee' mentioned above and start defeating top Asian teams. But, for a brief moment on Monday evening, it seemed that they might not even be able to ensure the first one. Sri Lanka pushed India to the brink for two and half quarters in the deciding game at the SABA Qualifiers last night, but a level-headed response from India to close out an emotional game saw them qualify for the U18 FIBA Asia Championship and gave the young players the test they needed to come together as a team.

By defeating Bangladesh and Sri Lanka on consecutive nights at the Koramangala Indoor Stadium in Bengaluru, India's U18 men's squad won the gold at the South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Qualifiers for the 23rd U18 FIBA Asia Championship. They will now represent South Asia at the U18 FIBA Asia tournament, set to be held in Doha (Qatar) from August 19-29 this year.

Only three teams - hosts India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh - took part in the SABA Qualifiers, which were held in Bengaluru from July 5-7 and organized by the Karnataka State Basketball Association (KSBBA). India's 12-member squad was led by coach Jora Singh Ghulia and featured up-and-coming names such as Mahipal Singh, Akhilesh Kumar, Gurvinder Singh Gill, K. Sunil, and Narender Rathee.

Photo courtesy: Ekalavyas

Sri Lanka - who haven't qualified for the FIBA Asia U18 Championship - made their ambitions clear from the start, as they demolished Bangladesh by 90 points in the first game of the qualifiers. A multi-pronged attack led by Anthony P (35 points) saw Sri Lanka cruise to a 126-36 win. Umair Md Naleer (19), Nadeeja Liyanage Nichula (19), Dimitri Sean Grebe (17), and Anushka Chathuranga (17) aided Sri Lanka's high-scoring efforts, while Bangladesh were led with 16 points by Hasan Mohd.

Team India got their start against Bangladesh on July 6th, in a game where the hosts took a big early lead (37-2 in the explosive first quarter) and then cruised the rest of the way to the easy victory. The duo of captain Gurvinder Singh Gill (18 points, 10 rebounds) and Mahipal Singh (16) were the high scorers for India.

The final showdown eventually came down to the winners of the past two games - India and Sri Lanka - to decide who would be the SABA representative in Doha next month. Sri Lanka, shorter in size but quicker in speed and firing on all cylinders from the perimeter, came out all guns blazing, taking the game to India with an 11-1 early lead. India recovered from the neighbours' early aggressiveness and came back to tie the game at the end of the first quarter. India stretched it out to a 10 point lead at halftime, but Sri Lanka plotted a comeback once more.

Photo courtesy: Ekalavyas

A scuffle broke out between several players on both sides midway in the third quarter - India's star Gill was ejected and Sri Lanka lost Kashi Juliyan. Luckily for India, Mahipal Singh took charge and helped the team close out their opponents over the next quarter. The final score read 85-60 in India's favour. Mahipal led the way with 32 points and 10 rebounds while K. Sunil added 19. The leading scorer for Sri Lanka was Mohd. Naleer Umair (16).

India could be blamed for a little overconfidence before the qualifiers began, but the Sri Lanka game was just the wake-up call that they needed. Opponents in Qatar are going to get a lot tougher, and India will have to sharpen several of their errors to mount a serious challenge. From July 12 - August 6, the team is scheduled to be in a national coaching camp at the SAI Center in Aurangabad, following which there are plans for a short exposure trip where the team can take part in friendly/practice games.

Hopefully, the camp and the friendlies over the next month can prepare India's U18s for the bigger challenge ahead. These young players are going to be the future stars of the country, and it will be up to them to ensure that India can move up from being just the minnows in big Asian competitions and start surprising a big team or two.

Check out Ekalavyas.com for more in-depth match reports from the qualifiers and relive the play-by-play live commentary as well.

India to host SABA Qualifiers for 22nd U18 FIBA Asia Championship in Bengaluru from today

The journey to face the best in the continent must begin by mastering their own region first. India's U18 basketball men's squad - with ambitions to play in the U18 FIBA Asia Championship later this year - will have to first defeat South Asian rivals Sri Lanka and Bangladesh at the South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Qualifiers for 23rd U18 FIBA Asia Championship. The three-day qualifying tournament, hosted by India, tips off today at the Koramangala Indoor Stadium in Bengaluru. It is being organized by the Karnataka State Basketball Association (KSBBA).

India are defending champions at the U18 SABA level, and will once again come in as clear favourites to defeat their opponents and qualify for the 2014 FIBA Asia U18 Championship, set to be held in Doha (Qatar) from August 19-29 this year.

The Basketball Federation of India (BFI) yesterday released the 12-man roster for India U18 Men yesterday:

• Akhilesh Kumar (Rajasthan)
  
• Mahipal Singh (Rajasthan)
  
• Gurvinder Singh Gill (Punjab)
  
• Dildar Singh Brar (Punjab)
  
• Anmol Singh (Punjab)
  
• Gaurav Ohlan (Delhi)
  
• Sunil (Delhi)
  
• Narender (Delhi)
  
• Sagar Joshi (West Bengal)
  
• P Rajesh (Chhattisgarh)
  
• Pradeep (Haryana)
  
• Ambati Reddy (Andhra Pradesh)
  
• Coach: Jora Singh Ghulia
  
• Coach: Paramdeep Singh
  

Many of the names above will be familiar for close followers of Indian basketball. Akhilesh Kumar, Mahipal Singh, and Sunil were part of India's squad that played in U16 FIBA Asia Championship in Tehran a year ago. Rajasthan's Mahipal Singh, who has been an up-and-coming star for several years, was chosen to participate in the NBA/FIBA Basketball Without Borders camp in Taipei last month. Narender and Gurvinder Singh Gill were part of India's squad that won silver at the U18 FIBA Asia 3x3 championship in Thailand last year.

Speaking about India’s chances to Deccan Herald, Coach Jora Singh sounded supremely confident (if a little too confident) "We definitely expect to win," he said, "I do not see much competition from the other two teams." No pressure, then. Here are the schedule of games at the qualifiers:

• July 5 - 6:00 PM: Sri Lanka vs. Bangladesh.
  
• July 6 - 6:00 PM: India vs L/O Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh.
  
• July 7 - 6:00 PM: India vs W/O Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh.
  

At the previous FIBA Asia U18 championship in 2012, India finished 10th, but featured one of the breakout stars of the tournament in Palpreet Singh Brar. The new crop of juniors will be hoping to one-up the squad's results this time around. But first, they must make true of Coach Jora Singh's confidence and take care of business against the South Asian opponents at home. If you happen to be in Bengaluru or nearby, be sure to show up and support the squad, and also catch some of the brightest future Indian basketball talents in action.

Three Indian players at Basketball Without Borders Asia Camp in Taipei

Every year, a small number of the most talented young basketball players blessed with star potential are invited to one of the NBA and FIBA organized 'Basketball Without Borders' (BWB) camps around the world. This year, for the first time, the Basketball Without Borders Asia camp is being held in Taipei, Taiwan. A small group of current and former NBA players are set to be at the helm of this camp, overseeing and training the future generation of Asian and Oceania stars, a generation that consists of three players who have been invited from India: Vishal Gupta (Andhra Pradesh), Ashish Briggs (Madhya Pradesh), and Mahipal Singh (Rajasthan).

Photo courtesy: Troy Justice

The camp is being held in Taipei from June 13-16 this year. NBA players invited to the camp include Nicolas Batum (Portland Trail Blazers), John Salmons (Toronto Raptors), Ronny Turiaf (Minnesota Timberwolves), and Cody Zeller (Charlotte Bobcats). The biggest presence - literally and figuratively - will be of NBA Legend Yao Ming. Yao is the greatest Asian to ever play the game, was the cornerstone of China's national team, and played nine years with the Houston Rockets.

Gupta, Briggs, and Singh will be among 50 of the top young players from Asia and Oceania. The Business Standard interviewed some of the Indian players prior to the beginning of the camp:

"Training at the BWB camp will make a lot of difference in my style of play, and it will be an unparalleled experience to interact with NBA legend Yao Ming and the other stars making their way to the camp," said Gupta.
"Hailing from a small town like Ujjain, one can only dream of visiting such international camps and learning the technical aspects of the game from the best players in the world. I can't wait to be there and learn as much I can in those four days," said Briggs.

This year, BWB camps have already been held in Rome and Italy. The last camp is scheduled to be held in South Africa in the first week of August.

Cager Watch: 10 Indian basketball players to watch in 2014

Indian basketball is slowly arriving at a turning point, where the next generation of young talents now have better coaching, opportunity, and facilities than ever before to keep the established stars at the tip of their toes. For both veterans of the game with dozens of international appearances or newcomers ready to burst out and turn heads, 2014 will be an important year to prove their place in the system as attention on the game increases.

Through the course of 2014, the only major international opportunities for India will be the FIBA Asia U18 Men and Women tournaments later this year. India's Senior Men and Women teams will also be taking part at the basketball tournament in the Lusofonia Games next week. But domestically, India's top men and women players will be involved in various tournaments around the year, including the Basketball Federation of India's (BFI) national championships, prestigious invitational tournaments like the Savio Cup, the Ramu Memorial Basketball Tournament, and more.

Here - in last name alphabetic order - are 10 Indian basketball players to watch for 2014.

Kavita Akula

Akula, a wily young point guard from Chhattisgarh, was part of the original eight students chosen for the IMG Academy scholarship four years ago. The youngster has blossomed into an important player for state and country since. She was the MVP of last year's Junior National Championship for Chhattisgarh's gold medal winning team, and could make a difference at both junior and senior levels this year. She is also likely to play a major part for India's U18 Women's squad. Three years ago, she was one of leading assist-makers in Asia at the U16 FIBA Asia Championship.

Loveneet Singh Atwal

Punjabi guard Loveneet Singh is a little ball of energy. Loveneet has starred for India at various senior and youth levels, including FIBA Asia's U18 3x3 championship last year and was one of the youngest players in India's senior team as well. As the baton is passed to the next generation, expect this exciting, high-octane guard to be a major part of that future.

Satnam Singh Bhamara

If you're in the obscure minority of Indian basketball fans who haven't heard of Bhamara, read up. The talented 18-year-old 7-footer from a small village in Punjab is currently learning the game at the IMG Academy in Florida, USA. Because of his combination of size, skill, and youth, Bhamara has been India's most tantalizing male talent in ages. Depending on his IMG schedule, he will be back for India's senior national and under-18 championships representing Punjab, and leading them close to glory again. But his big moment might come later this year at the FIBA Asia U18 Championship. Three years ago - he was the most devastating force in Asia at Nha Trang City at the U16 FIBA ABC. Could he be India's hope for a knockout round appearance this year?

Vishesh Bhriguvanshi

Bhriguvanshi could have been a part of this list for a decade. The Varanasi-born slasher broke out as a young star and was quickly promoted to captain of India's Senior national team. He is still the captain, and still one of India's most talented players. Now in the prime of his career, Bhriguvanshi will likely have another stellar year for ONGC and Uttarakhand. He is the center of ONGC's unstoppable squad, and has already led to a Federation Cup win with an MVP performance. Expect big things from him in the current Savio Cup, the Lusofonia Games, and other domestic tournaments.

Poonam Chaturvedi

Poonam Chaturvedi - who plays for Chhattisgarh - stands as India's tallest Women's basketball player, perhaps ever! The 18-year-old Chaturvedi picked up the game late in her life, but under the tutelage of Rajesh Patel in Chhattisgarh, she has taken quick strides to improvement. Now, she is the centerpiece of Chhattisgarh's Senior and Junior Women's teams. She was one of the stars for Chhattisgarh as they won the Junior Nationals last year and also in last week's Federation Cup victory in Ahmedabad. She will likely be chosen for India's Lusofonia Games squad, too, and will surely be part of India's squad at the U18 FIBA Asia Championship.

Bhandavya HM

Karnataka's up-and-comer Bhandavya HM wasn't a big name outside of her state until she was chosen for India's U16 side and became the team's most consistent performer last year. Bhandavya will be graduating to the Junior national team for the FIBA tournament this year.

Geethu Anna Jose

Jose is synonymous with Indian basketball, and a lifelong member of any 'players to watch' list in India. Jose has been India's best player every year for over 10 years internationally and has been one of the few Indians to stand neck-to-neck against Asia's finest. Domestically, there is only one rule in India's Women's basketball: whichever team Geethu is on will win. Born in Kerala, Geethu is the only Indian player to earn a WNBA trial and has played professionally in Australia and Thailand. She has led Southern Railway or Indian Railways to dozens of club or national level tournaments. The only thing that could stop Geethu in 2014 is Geethu herself: after her marriage, she has hinted that she is thinking about retiring from the national team. But as long as she plays, she will still be the best.

Mahipal Singh

With massive performances in every game, India's campaign at the U16 FIBA Asia Championship last year was mostly a one-man show, and that man was 16-year-old Mahipal Singh. This year, Singh will be looking to capitalize on his big performances with a go with the U18 team, and a chance to turn heads again. Domestically, he'll have to be the backbone for Rajasthan as they try and compete amongst much stronger sides around the country.

Smruthi Radhakrishnan

Now a regular India senior international, Maharashtra's Smruthi Radhakrishnan was the MVP of last week's Federation Cup, as she helped her team secure a silver medal. She will get a chance to show her best at the international level at the Lusofonia Games and at the William Jones Cup - if India are invited this year. Back home, she will he hoping to join hands with Shireen Limaye to bring Maharashtra Women glory in the National championship.

Amjyot Singh

Punjab's Amjyot Singh has been a revelation. The lanky power forward was a relative unknown until a few years ago, when he broke out with Kenny Natt's Indian squad, and continued the form with big performances for the national squad ever since. Amjyot is now a permanent starting fixture for Team India, and was the squad's leading rebounder at the most recent FIBA Asia Championship. India will rely on his size and finesse once again at the Lusofonia Games. Domestically, he's currently representing IOB and Tamil Nadu. Look for this being the year when he breaks out to become the most valuable player in India.

China win 3rd consecutive gold at U16 FIBA Asia Championship; India finish 11th

China are undoubtedly the most feared basketball team in Asia – and while recent history has seen them stumble against other rivals in Asian tournaments – they have showcased that their future is set to be as successful as their past. A new crop of youth Chinese players continued the country’s dominance at the 2013 FIBA Asia U16 Championship, and with their 26th consecutive win at the tournament, brought home the gold medal against Philippines on Friday. The tournament, which was held at Tehran (Iran) from September 24 to October 4 featured the young talents that are set to alight Asian hoops on fire.

India were amongst the 14 teams that took part in the tournament, and despite some encouraging individual performances, failed to improve on their standing at the championship from 2011 and dropped one spot to 11th place.

Although China outlasted the Filipinos in the final, the 85-78 margin was their lowest margin of victory in the three editions of the U16 tournament. Led by Yanhao Zhao (25) and Hao Fu (22), China maintained a short lead through the course of the game, and although the Philippines came close, they could never come close enough. Jose Mendoza scored 20 points for the Philippines, who had to settle for the silver medal.

On Friday, Japan took a big lead in the first half to cruise to a 85-72 victory in the bronze medal game over Chinese Taipei. Hayato Maki (23) and Rui Hachimura (21) did most of the offensive damage for the Japanese. Cheng-Shun Hsu led Chinese Taipei with 18.

The tournament’s semi-final stage, a day earlier, presented some exciting rivalries in the matchups. China had no problem swatting away Japan for a 99-78 win behind Yanhao Zhao’s 32 point burst. Jinqui Hu added 22 for the winners, while Rui Hachimura (25) and Yuto Nomi (16) had been Japan’s leading scorers. The second semi-final was a close fight to the finish, as the see-saw battle saw the Philippines lose their halftime lead and then come back to defeat Chinese Taipei 77-72 in dramatic fashion. Heroics by Jose Mendoza (28) and Michael Nieto (17) made the difference for the Philippines.

Two years ago, India showed some promise at the U16 FIBA ABC, when, armed with the talents of 7-foot teenager Satnam Singh Bhamara, they gave troubles to several Asian powerhouses and finished at 10th place. Bhamara stood out as one of the tournament’s leading scorers and best individual players. All of the players from that team had moved on to make room for a fresh group of youngsters. Although India couldn’t improve on their previous standings, they saw another individual bright spark emerge – Rajasthan’s swingman Mahipal Singh – who was unstoppable through the course of the championship and finished as Asia’s top scorer with an average of 25 points per game. The Indian squad – led by coaches Tritesh Guha and Raghuvendra Singh Gaur – can consider themselves unfortunate as they lost two games to overtime heartbreaks during the course of the tournament.

India were drawn in Group B in the Preliminary Round of the tournament, along with Jordan and Japan, and Mahipal Singh was determined to help the team get off to a good start in their first game against Jordan. India held on to a six point halftime lead, but Jordan began to slowly chip away in the second half and came back to tie the game by the end of regulation. They continued their momentum in the high-scoring overtime period to defeat India 100-97. Khaled Abuaboud (25) Mohammed Daher (21) and Zaid Albattikhi (16) led the way for Jordan’s comeback victory. Mahipal led India with 25 points, while Ashish Briggs (21) and Akhilesh Kumar Tudu (16) added to his efforts.

India were always slated to face an uphill battle against Japan in their next game, but they surprised many onlookers with a respectable performance. After losing a lot of ground in a bad second quarter, Mahipal’s 35 point outburst helped India remain neck to neck with Japan till the end, but it wasn’t enough as they went down 85-71. For Japan, Hachimura (19) and Nomi (19) kept the ship steady in the victory.

Since there were only three teams in India’s group, they automatically qualified for the Second Round Group F. Chinese Taipei led India by 16 at halftime. A second half comeback attempt – led once again by 34 points by the brilliant Mahipal Singh – still left India on the short end of the 80-69 final score. Yej-Ju Wu (21) Yung-Cheng Sun (17) and Chien-Chih Huang (16) led Chinese Taipei.

India finally got their first win of the tournament, and it came in thrilling fashion against Kazakhstan. After a tight first half where Kazakhstan held to a two point lead, India came roaring back in the third quarter to double the Kazakhs output 22-11. But Kazakhstan didn’t give in easy, and a strong fourth quarter saw them reach perilously close to India again. In the end, 22 points by Mahipal and 16 points by bench player Sunil were enough for India to scrape away with a 68-65 win.

India played against the Philippines in the last Second Round game, and once again, trailed only by a small margin at halftime. But this time the third quarter didn’t go their way, and the Philippines offense exploded for 31 points in the 10-minute period. Jose Iv Go was unstoppable for the Philippines, high scoring the game with 26 points, while Nieto added 16. In the end, India had displayed that they could hang close with Asia’s best, but still lost 78-67.

Out of the reckoning for a Quarter-Final spot, India had to contend to play in the 9-12th place playoffs. They started badly in their first game against Malaysia, totaling just 24 points in the first half. But India turned on their defense in the third quarter to hold Malaysia to just eight points, and set up the scene for a thrilling final period. In a back-and-forth finish with many heroics, it was Rahul Mehla who hit two crucial free throws in the dying seconds to send the game into overtime. But once again, India came up short in the extra period, and Malaysia held their nerves for a 82-80 win. Malaysia’s Zi Fueng Chang and Mahipal Singh dueled in a memorable shootout, totaling 26 points each. Ting Jun Foo added scored 18 and Koon Wei Chong added 16 for Malaysia. Jaipal Singh Maan made the most of his added minutes to end with 17 points for India.

India had to settle for 11/12th place matchup in their final game against Syria, and they dominated the first three quarters to comfortably finish with an 81-67 win. 19 points and nine rebounds by Mahipal once again led the way for India. Syria’s captain Ronaldo Shammas had 22 in a losing effort.

India ended the tournament with a 2-5 record and at 11th place.

It was mostly a one-man show for India through the course of the championship, with Mahipal Singh the only player averaging double digits in the scoring section. The over-reliance on Mahipal may have helped keep India competitive in many games but also made their offense at times quite predictable.

Although the team’s efforts have improved, the final standing was a step backward. India’s youth still have to fine tune several things to turn those close losses into victories. It’s not always as easy fix, since other teams are fine tuning and improving too. But we hope that at least the experience of participating in this tournament can instill some confidence in these youth players for better performances ahead.

India U16 Boys to compete in SABA Qualifiers in Dhaka for 3rd U16 FIBA Asia Championship

India's under-16 boys' basketball team is in Dhaka (Bangladesh) to take part in the South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Qualifiers for the 3rd FIBA Asia U16 Championship for Men. The Qualifiers are being held from July 3-5 and four teams - India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Maldives - will take part to determine who will be representing South Asia in the U16 FIBA Asia Championship, scheduled to be held in Tehran (Iran) from September 25-October 4, 2013.

The Basketball Federation of India (BFI) has finalized a 12-men roster for this championship who are already in Dhaka along with their coaching staff, led by Head Coach Raghvendra Singh Gour. Several young up-and-coming Indian talents, including the likes of Yogesh Kaneriya and Mahipal Singh, are part of India's team.

Here is India's U16 Boys Basketball roster for the SABA Qualifiers:

• Mahipal Singh (Rajasthan)
  
• Akhilesh Kumar Tudu (Rajasthan)
  
• Yogesh Kaneriya (Rajasthan)
  
• Prabhnoor Singh (Punjab)
  
• Rahul Mehla (Punjab)
  
• Jaipal Singh (Punjab)
  
• Bitto (Delhi)
  
• Sunil (Delhi)
  
• Mithun Das (Chhattisgarh)
  
• Dhimant Sahi (Tamil Nadu)
  
• Erash Hooda
  
• Arjun Pandit (Delhi)
  

• Coach: Raghavendra Singh Gour
  
• Assistant Coach: Tirthesth Guha
  
• Physiotherapist: Raj Kumar Dubey
  
• FIBA Referee: Atanu Banerjee
  

Here is the schedule of games at the tournament:

• July 3: India vs Maldives (6 PM) / Nepal vs Bangladesh (7:30 PM)
  
• July 4: Nepal vs India (4 PM) / Bangladesh vs Maldives (5:30 PM)
  
• July 5: Nepal vs Maldives (4 PM) / India vs Bangladesh (5:30 PM)
  

As it usually is in South Asian basketball competitions, India will start as clear favourites to go qualify for the 3rd U16 FIBA Championship for the third consecutive year.

India will have good memories of the U16 FIBA ABC. Two years ago in the previous championship at Nha Trang, a team led by behemoth talent Satnam Singh Bhamara broke out into the scene and gave some of Asia's finest squads a scare. India couldn't improve on their 10th place finish, but showed much-improved performances on court. It was Bhamara's breakout moment, as he ended up as the leading scorer of the championship and was perhaps the best defensive player in the tournament too. There seems to be no such talent on the Indian roster this time around, but hopefully the team can play well together as a unit to surprise Asia's finest once again.

But, first things first. India has to deal with Nepal, Maldives, and Bangladesh. It will be an important tune-up to get the team ready for bigger things ahead.

Rajasthan Boys and Chhattisgarh Girls hoist Sub-Junior National Championships

The IMG-Reliance 37th Sub-Junior National Championship for Boys and Girls came to an entertaining conclusion as the finals were held on Thursday evening at the Municipal Corporation Basketball Court in Kangra (HP). In front of a large crowd of fans who had been engrossed in some intriguing basketball over the past week, Rajasthan Boys and Chhattisgarh Girls emerged as champions.

In the first game of the evening, the sub-junior girls from Chhattisgarh took on a tough squad from Karnataka, who had been putting up some excellent performances in the competition. But Chhattisgarh had been the strongest team in the tournament, beating each opponent by a large margin. They proved their efficiency yet again in the final with a 63-47 victory, led once more by their star forward Riya Verma.

For Chhattisgarh Girls, this victory further cemented their domination over the Sub-Junior division. This was their ninth title in the past ten years. “We have been winning for a long time, and it was important for us to continue this winning tradition,” said Riya. Chhattisgarh were in action again in the Boys division, as the youngsters took a tough squad from Rajasthan. It was a competitive and hard-fought game in the first half, until the Rajasthan team finally began to loosen Chhattisgarh’s defensive shackles and impose their will on the game. Led once again by Mahipal Singh (28), Rajasthan opened up a 16 point lead in the third en route to a 54-40 victory.

“We are repeat champions, and it feels happy to win here!” said Mahipal, who will leave Kangra after some legendary performances, “I will move on to a higher division next year and I want to continue winning!”

In the third-place match-ups Delhi Boys defeated Madhya Pradesh Boys and the Madhya Pradesh Girls edged Tamil Nadu Girls in a close game. Munish Sharma, the President of the Himachal Pradesh Basketball Association (HPBA), commented on the conclusion of this memorable tournament. “We have worked very hard to make sure that the competition was held successfully,” said Sharma, “From the behalf of the Basketball Federation of India and the HPBA, I want to thank all the players and officials who took part in this tournament coming from different parts of the country, and thank the local people of Kangra who enjoyed themselves and hosted such an event.”

Final Scores:

Girls: Chhattisgarh 63 (Riya Verma 22, P. Divya 15) bt. Karnataka 40 (Supriya 14, Krupsree 10)
Boys: Rajasthan 54 (Mahipal Singh 28, Akhilesh 12) bt. Chhattisgarh 47 (ON Jaiswal 10)

Third Place Playoffs

Girls: Madhya Pradesh 35 bt. Tamil Nadu 33
Boys: Delhi 41 bt. Madhya Pradesh 35

Final Standings:

Boys

Rajasthan
Chhattisgarh
Delhi
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
Punjab
Uttar Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Haryana
Kerala


Girls

Chhattisgarh
Karnataka
Madhya Pradesh
Tamil Nadu
Maharashtra
Kerala
Uttar Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Punjab
Jharkhand