COLOMBO (Sri Lanka) - India earned the right to represent South Asia in the FIBA U18 Asia Cup 2024 following a mighty conquest of the SABA Qualifiers held on July 10-13.
The #YoungCagers beat Sri Lanka in the Final, 87-62, on July 13 to complete a four-game sweep of the tilt played at the Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium in the Sri Lankan capital.
The towering Mohammad Ishan imposed his presence inside and finished with 22 points, 20 rebounds, and 5 blocks, leading the third-quarter reversal that saw India overpower their counterparts, 20-7, for a 63-50 lead entering the final frame - never to look back.
Also delivering in that decisive run were guards Lavish and Mirthun Vel Dhanasekar, who went on to register 19 points apiece and combined for 13 rebounds. Playing a key role as well was Nitesh Kumar, who chipped in 10 points and 6 boards in quality minutes off the bench.
Anthony Bernard and Eveen Senarathna, on the other hand, had 13 points each to lead Sri Lanka, who actually won the second quarter to tie the game at 43-all entering the halftime intermission, but could not sustain their momentum coming out of the break.
The hosts wanted to exact vengeance on the very same team that beat them on opening night, 88-44, but India proved to be too much as they found their groove in the second half.
The team of Coach Jai Prakash Singh are headed into the continental meet looking to better their finish from the 2022 edition held in Tehran, Iran, where they placed 9th.
India reached the 2024 U18 Asia Cup shortly after Kazakhstan, who booked their own ticket following a two-game sweep of the CABA Qualifiers last July 10-12 in Kyrgyzstan.
Following their entry, other teams will try their luck in making it to the biennial tournament through the other Sub-Zone Qualifiers taking place in the next two months.
The WABA Qualifiers are still ongoing in Iraq, where 2 spots are up for grabs. The SEABA Qualifiers will be held in Malaysia on July 19-21 with 2 tickets on the line. The GBA Qualifiers, lastly, are set on July 29-August 2 in Kuwait, where 2 slots will be fought for.
The FIBA U18 Asia Cup 2024 will be played on September 2-9 in Amman, Jordan. Korea are the reigning champions after edging out Japan, 77-73, in the Final in 2022.
FIBA