Final: India earn promotion as Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka finish strong

BENGALURU (FIBA U16 Women's Asia Championship 2017) - India beat Malaysia to earn a slot in Division A, while Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka both closed their campaigns on bright notes. 

Sri Lanka were sluggish to start their battle for fifth place against Nepal, but they found their groove in the second half to win, 74-38. Liyaara Hettiarachchi was absolutely brilliant in this game, scoring 17 points, grabbing 20 rebounds, getting 4 steals and blocking 4 shots. No Nepali player could slow her down, and she imposed her will on both ends of the floor.

The second game had Kazakhstan bounce back after losing to India in the Semi-Finals with a big win over Iran, 61-47. This win gave the Kazakhs a spot on the Division B podium alongside Malaysia and the hosts. Much of the credit goes to Alexandra Komarova and Arailym Serikova, who scored 17 and 12 points respectively, while Fatemeh Ghazvini shone for Iran anew with 20 points.

India closed Division B play by rallying in the second half to hold back a gritty Malaysia, 64-48, and earn promotion to Division A. India battled Malaysia in a tight contest till midway through the third quarter when India regained their composure and broke the game open. Vaishnavi Yadav once again displayed game-long brilliance for India, hitting 14 points, collaring 12 rebounds and getting 7 steals, while Wong Zi Wei and Tricia Ng were the leading scorers for Malaysia with 14 points and 10 points respectively.

RESULTS:

Sri Lanka beat Nepal, 74-38

Kazakhstan beat Iran, 61-47

India beat Malaysia, 64-48

FIBA