India’s U-16 girls’ basketball team triumphed over Iran 67-66 in a thrilling final to win the FIBA Asia Cup Division B in Malaysia HYDERABAD: City’s Viha Reddy top-scored with 21 points while Aditi Subramanian added 19 as India edged out Iran 67-66 to emerge as the FIBA U-16 Asia Cup Division B basketball champions in Malaysia on Friday. With this thrilling one-point title triumph, Indian girls regained their berth in Division A of the top-eight teams in Asia. In 2027, India will end their five-year wait to play against Asia’s best teams in the biennial tournament. The team went undefeated (5-0) through the tournament, marking their first championship win since 2017. Viha of Rockwell International School was also the vice-captain of the Indian team who contributed to India’s success. In the exciting title clash, India gave a positive start and maintained their lead for 35 minutes of the final. With 17 seconds remaining, India had a four-point advantage and allowed Iran to score a three-pointer with the intention of regaining ball possession. With just four seconds remaining for the buzzer, India handled the ball well to emerge as champions. The quarter-wise progress in India’s favour read 17-13, 15-19, 20-10, 15-24. In the seven-day championship, India defeated Iran twice, outclassed Uzbekistan and Samoa in the league stage before they prevailed over Indonesia 65-53 in the semifinals. Former India shooting guard Anitha Paul Durai was the head coach of the team. Elated with India’s unbeaten run in the tournament, Anitha said, “Our focus was to get promoted. I am very proud of my players. They had the hunger to play, they wanted to win, and they did it in style. This is the future of the Indian team.” Result (Final): India (Viha Reddy Jonnalagadda 21, Aditi Subramanian 19, Reva Kulkarni 13, Mahek Sharma 10) bt Iran (Mobina Bereihi 30) 67-66 (17-13, 15-19, 20-10, 15-24); Semifinal: India (Viha Reddy 22, Reva Kulkarni 17, Mahek Sharma 12) beat Indonesia (Inez Welly 13) 65-53 (11-11, 13-13, 20-16, 21-13).
