BFI-IMG Reliance tips of College Basketball League for the season - starting in Hyderabad

In the exact same mould of the School Basketball Leagues that are being held (or have recently concluded) in various cities around India, the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) and IMG Reliance have launched this year's BFI IMG Reliance College Basketball League. The first step of the league tipped off in Hyderabad with 10 men's and 10 women's teams on December 30th. The Andhra Pradesh Basketball Association also worked in conjunction to organize this competition.

Just like the School League, the College League will be held in eight cities around the country: last year's returning cities New Delhi, Mumbai, Indore, Ludhiana, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bangalore and Chennai, and two new additions in Indore and Hyderabad. 10 men's and 10 women's teams will participate in each city. The college winners from all the states will participate in the National Champions Cup to be held in April/May, 2014 in New Delhi.

The launch of both the school and college leagues in India signifies an important step in strengthening basketball at the grassroots level in India and make it a bigger part of the daily life of young Indians. As hoops grows in the biggest Indian cities - and then passes on to smaller and smaller towns - it will lay a foundation for the eventual Indian professional basketball league.

According to the BFI, one of the main goals of the College League is to start the first pan-India League, as opposed to the current system of competition, which is usually in the form of tournaments. As part of the 2013-14 College League, BFI and IMG Reliance have put aside money for each participating Colleges for refurbishments of their home courts. With the help of the State Basketball Association, BFI and IMG Reliance hopes this initiative will incentivize colleges to invest in basketball.

Here are the Participating Teams at the league in Hyderabad:

Men

Group A: Loyola Academy, Bhavans Degree College, Mallareddy Engineering College, Muffakham Jha College of Engineering and Technology, Nizam Degree College.
Group B: AV College, St. Martin's Engineering College, Avanti Degree College, BITS Pilani, CVSR College of Engineering.

Women

Group A: Loyola Academy, St. Ann's Degree College, Kasturba Degree College, CVSR College of Engineering, Gokaraju Nukaraju Engineering College.
Group B: Narayanamma Engineering College, St. Francis Degree College, St. Martins Engineering College, BITS Pilani, Government College of Physical Education.