2017 Junior National Basketball Championship tip off in Greater Noida

If you want to catch the future of Indian basketball, head over this week to Greater Noida for the best under-18 players that the nation has to offer. The 68th Junior National Basketball Championship for Boys and Girls is set to be held at the Shiv Nadar University from June 4-11, 2017. The Championship will feature 25 men’s teams and 24 women’s teams in the U18 age group, from various Indian States and Union territories.

Tamil Nadu boys and Karnataka girls are the defending champions from the previous edition held in Puducherry in May 2016.

The fixtures and groupings of the 2017 Junior Nationals were announced on Saturday at a press conference at Shiv Nadar University, presided over by Chander Mukhi Sharma, Secretary General, BFI; Seema Sharma, President, UP Basketball Association (UPBA); Bhupendra Shahi, Hon. Secretary, UPBA and Alok Sharma, Additional Director General, Sashastra Seema Bal.

Participating Teams

Men

• Group A: Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh.
• Group B: Kerala, Delhi, Chandigarh, Maharashtra, Telangana.
• Group C: Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir.
• Group D: Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Gujarat, West Bengal.
• Group E: Uttarakhand, Bihar, Karnataka, Tripura.
• Group E: Goa, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Puducherry.

Women

• Group A: Karanataka, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Delhi, Gujarat.
• Group B: Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan.
• Group C: Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand.
• Group D: Uttar Pradesh, Chandigarh, Odisha.
• Group E: Goa, Bihar, Telangana, West Bengal.
• Group E: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Tripura, Uttarakhand.

Tamil Nadu, with one of India's best youth basketball development structures, will be a threat in both the boys' and girls' divisions again this year. Kerala and Delhi Boys will be hoping for another return to the medal rounds. In the girls' division, reigning champions Karnataka and Maharashtra will be some of the top teams to watch.