The Hindu : Sport / Basketball : Vijaya Bank lifts Nachimuthu Gounder Cup

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
ePaper

Sport

Sport - Basketball

Vijaya Bank lifts Nachimuthu Gounder Cup

Sports Reporter

WINNERS: The delighted members of Vijaya Bank (Bangalore), after clinching the title. — Photo: S. Siva Saravanan

Coimbatore: The crowd rooted for Indian Bank (Chennai) but it was Vijaya Bank (Bangalore), which took home the Nachimuthu Gounder Cup with a resounding 81-57 victory in the final of the 49th all-India basketball tournament for men here on Tuesday.

The Chennai men raced to a 7-0 lead in the first quarter but squandered the advantage in the second never to climb back.

Murali sizzles

Murali Mohan (29 pts) was the man who did the maximum scoring for Vijaya Bank. The gritty forward attacked the flanks with aplomb and reached the ring with ease.

Austin (17 pts) supported him to a great extent.

Jaed Khan (22 pts) and Amarnath Gopi (18 pts) worked hard for the Chennai team but lacked support from their teammates. "We played to a plan and it clicked. We are happy that we managed to lift the title despite the absence of two of our star players," said A. Rajkumar, coach, Vijaya Bank.

Kerala State Electricity Board men from Thiruvananthapuram won the Renuka Ramanathan Trophy for Fair Play.

S.Rly. women triumph

In the women's section, Southern Railway (Chennai) clinched the CRI Pumps Trophy with an emphatic 84-38 win over an off-colour KSEB. Kokila of the winning team won the `best promising youngster' award.

The results (final):

Men: Vijaya Bank 81 (Murali Mohan 29, Austin 17) bt Indian Bank (Chennai) 57 (Jaed Khan 22, Amarnath Gopi 18).

Women: S. Rly. (Chennai) 84 (S. Jagana Jyothi 29, Kokila 19) bt KSEB (Thiruvananthapuram) 38.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail