Delhi's Modern School boys and girls win 2015 Win Mumby Tournament in Mussoorie

Perched over 7,000 feet above sea level in the Himalayas can be a challenging place for basketball, but its only from the challenge that the most elite of young talents can emerge. Woodstock School in Mussoorie - my alma mater! - hosted the 16th Win Mumby All India Basketball Tournament from November 3-6. Both boys and girls finals were held on Friday, November 6, with Modern School from New Delhi hoisting both the titles in an impressive clean sweep.

Led by Sunil Rathee - one of the top young players in Delhi state - Modern's boys team showed no mercy to hosts Woodstock in the boys' final, running to a blowout 65-33 win. Earlier in the day, Modern's girls defeated Welham Girls from Dehradun behind a strong effort by Ragnee Jha.

Modern's Ragnee Jha was named the MVP in the girls' section, while Woodstock's Dipankar Nakarmi was the boys' MVP.

Earlier on Friday, Modern's girls defeated Strawberry Fields High School (Chandigarh) in the semi-final stage, while Welham Girls' got past Wynberg-Allen Mussoorie. In the boys' semi-finals, Modern defeated The Asian School (Dehradun) and Woodstock beat Welham Boys' (Dehradun).

Padma Shri winning actor and former captain of Woodstock's basketball team Tom Alter was the chief guest at the event.

Woodstock School wins 3rd consecutive Win Mumby Basketball tournament in Mussoorie

Prepare to be blasted with a full force of bias.

I did most of my schooling in Woodstock School in Mussoorie, spending my formative years (10-18) in the boarding school in the Himalayas. I even worked at the school for a year. It was my time here that made me into the basketball fanatic that I am, and, although I was never good enough to play in the Woodstock's basketball team (The Tigers), I was deeply influenced by all of the school's basketball activities. Woodstock's basketball season comes to a heady zenith every spring, when the school organizes the Win Mumby All India Basketball Tournament. Over a dozen of India's top schools from the Mussoorie/Dehradun region, and some from much further like New Delhi, Sanawar, and Patiala, take part in this annual tournament. It's basketball mania at it's best, nestled in the gorgeous surroundings of the Mussoorie mountains.

I was back to witness the Win Mumby in Woodstock this year, and the tournament didn't disappoint, as the Woodstock Boys team lifted the championship for the third consecutive year on Saturday, April 20th, following a convincing win over Welham Boys' School (Dehradun) 67-42 in the Final. Woodstock's captain Matthew Sailo - a tall, dominant senior - was named MVP of the tournament for the second consecutive year. The final turned out to be a much easier affair, especially after the memorable battle for the home team in the Semi-Final round, where they edged Modern School (Delhi) 83-79 behind 45 points by Karan Deol.

In the Girls section, Modern School won the championship for the second year running after beating Welham Girls’ School 39-20. Woodstock’s girls team reached the semi-finals but lost out to Welham Girls.

The 16 teams competing were:

Girls: Welham Girls’ School (Dehradun), Hope Town Girls’ School (Dehradun), The Shri Ram School (Gurgaon), The Lawrence School (Sanawar), Modern School (Delhi), Bluebells School (Delhi), Wynberg Allen School (Mussoorie), Woodstock School (Mussoorie).

Boys: Welham Boys’ School (Dehradun), The Doon School (Dehradun), The Shri Ram School (Gurgaon), Yadavindra Public School (Patiala), Modern School (Delhi), The Asian School (Dehradun), Wynberg Allen School (Mussoorie), Woodstock School (Mussoorie).

Vijay Bahuguna, the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, was the chief guest at the Win Mumby Basketball Court for the Finals.

Also attending the tournament were representatives from NBA-India, including NBA's Senior Director of International Operations Troy Justice, NBA's Senior Director of Development in India Akash Jain, and Eban Hyams, who is also of NBA-India Operations. Justice gave a talk to the Senior Boys team about applying to US/Canada colleges with their basketball programmes in mind. Hyams put up a special 'dunk performance' for the kids over the past week, too.

Congrats, Tigers! Hopefully our Girls are inching closer to figuring out how to solve the Welham's riddle!

Woodstock School wins the Win Mumby Basketball Tournament in Mussoorie

Woodstock School (Boys) and Modern School Barakhamba (Girls) won the 12th Win Mumby All India Basketball Tournament, held at Woodstock School in Mussoorie from April 18-21, 2012.

Growing up in boarding school in Mussoorie, April was usually one of my favourite times of the year. April meant spring, warm weather in a place that is usually either cold or rainy, and most importantly, it was BASKETBALL SEASON! My school - Woodstock School - has been hosting the Win Mumby All India Basketball Tournament for over a decade now, and it is by far the most exciting time to be up there. Some of the best school teams from all Mussoorie, Dehradun (the hub of India's finest boarding schools, by the way) and even down out from Shimla, Nainital, Delhi and Punjab send teams up for this tournament. Basketball has historically been Woodstock's best sport, and the host team has always been amongst the favourites to host the trophy.

I graduated from the school in 2003, the year when our team won most of the school basketball tournaments up in the Doon Valley, including Win Mumby and the Afzal Khan trophy in Doon School, Dehradun.

Coming into the 12th year of the tournament, Woodstock had one of the best teams again. Woodstock Boys were the reigning champs. The usual favourites were present, including Welham's Boys' and Girls' Schools from Dehradun, Modern School from Barakhamba, Delhi, and Doon School. I return to Woodstock often, and have been back again this year to re-live my favourite high-school moment.

The tournament started on Wednesday, April 18th, featuring nine boys teams and eight girls teams. Here are the teams that took part:

Boys: Welham Boys' School (Dehradun), Doon International School (Dehradun), Modern School Barakhamba (New Delhi), Yadavindra Public School (Patiala), The Shri Ram School (New Delhi), Sherwood College (Nainital), Wynberg-Allen School (Mussoorie), The Doon School (Dehradun), Woodstock School (Mussoorie).
Girls: Welham Girls' School (Dehradun), The Lawrence School (Sanawar), Modern School Barakhamba (New Delhi), The Shri Ram School (New Delhi), Wynberg-Allen School (Mussoorie), Tibetan Homes School (Mussoorie), Hopetown Girls School (Dehradun), Woodstock School (Mussoorie).

Woodstock's Boys team played well, except for a tough loss to Welham Boys' in the eve of the Final. After defeating Modern School in the Semi, Woodstock faced Welham's again in the Final on Saturday, April 21st. Woodstock responded well to win the crucial game and secure the trophy for the second year in a row, 47-42. Matthew Sailo of Woodstock was handed the Boys' MVP award.

In the Girls' final, Modern School from Delhi defeated Welham Girls' School in a rout, 66-37, to lift the trophy. Madhu Kumari of Modern School was the MVP and stepped up with a defining performance in the Final to claim her case.

Too bad Woodstock Girls lost in the Semi-Final - I'll be rooting them (in spirit, if not in presence) next year, and for the Boys to make it three in a row. Go Tigers!