In the final of the under-18 boys Deccan Gymkhana will take on Sports Arena in the 14th Late Indirabai Joshi Memorial Under-18 Girikand Cup District Championship on Monday.
On a rain-interrupted Sunday, Deccan Gymkhana scored a one-sided 53-17 win over Abhinava Vidyalaya, while Sports Arena got the better of Vidyanchal School 56-30.
In the first semi-final, it was a defence line of Aman Shaikh, Rajendra Singh and Armaan Mali who did not allow Abhinava to score baskets.
Shooters – Ojas Ambedkar and Om Pawar kept scoring baskets for Deccan Gymkhana to score an easy victory.
The second semi-final was all about Sports Arena shooters playing with speed and scoring baskets in tandem. Height was another factor which worked in the favour of Sports Arena.
“Today it was all about less dribbling and more passing since court was wet. Strategy was to focus on midrange shooting so even if shooters miss the ball, rebounders can go for baskets,” said Ashish Kumar coach of Sports Arena.
Coach of Vidyanchal School, Arun Pawar was satisfied with overall team performance.
“All the boys were from under-15 team and we did not had rebounders in our team so against team like Sports Arena, who had all under-18 players that too with great height, it was going to be tough but I am happy with over all tournament performance of our team,” said Pawar.
{{/usCountry}}“All the boys were from under-15 team and we did not had rebounders in our team so against team like Sports Arena, who had all under-18 players that too with great height, it was going to be tough but I am happy with over all tournament performance of our team,” said Pawar.
{{/usCountry}}Team analysis
Team strength: We have great defence line which will be key in the final whichever team we face – Sports Arena or Vidyanchal School, we will play to our strengths and try to outscore team.
Team combination: All players know their roles whether shooter or point guard all have great coordination so things will remain same for us in the final.
On semi-final win: It was a very easy game for us and we dominated right from the start.
— Om Pawar, Deccan Gymkhana
Team strength: Playing with speed is the team’s strength and we have great shooters in our team so against team like Deccan Gymkhana who has strong defence, we will continue to play with speed.
Team combination: We have good players guarding every position so nothing is to worry about combination.
On semi-final win: It was like a practice game for us. We put very less energy considering we were exhausted after the quarter-finals match but other boys stood up for the win. You will see much more better performance from our team tomorrow.
— Asif Khan, Sports Arena
Results:
Boys:Semi-final 1: Deccan Gymkhana A 53 (Ojas Ambedkar 11, Rajendra Singh 11) bt Abhinava Vidyalaya 17 (Aadi Jagdale 4). Half time: 33-11
Semi-final 2: Sports Arena 56 (Sunny Pisal 12, Asif Khan 10) bt Vidyanchal School 35 (Kunal Bhosale 16, Jitendra Choudhary 13) Half time 30-18