Vijaya Bank triumphant

Vijaya Bank emerged champions in the State ‘A’ Division basketball league at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium here on Tuesday.

In the final league encounter at the outdoor basketball courts, the bankmen outclass
ed Madras Engineer Group (MEG) 85-62 to finish on top of the league with 16 points.
Army Service Corps (14) bagged the second place. They were followed by Young Orions (12) in the third spot while MEG with 10 points came fourth.

Indiranagar Basketball Club finished at the bottom of the table. They will be relegated to the ‘B’ Division. Anil Kumar with 26 points top-scored for the champions while Arvind Arumugam (16) also made a vital contribution. For MEG, Ajay Joseph and S Subbaiah scored 14 and 10 points respectively.

The Armymen were never really in the game and trailed from the beginning against the favourites Vijaya Bank, who started with three India internationals -- Arumugam, Anil and Rajesh Uppar.

Their towering physical presence proved too much for the MEG hoopsters, who found themselves chasing shadows for most of the time.

The bankmen took a seven-point lead (23-16) at the end of the first quarter and the gap kept widening as the game progressed. The second quarter was no different as Anil and Arumugam kept the scoreboard ticking with their impressive attempts from the distance and also from inside. At half-time, Vijaya Bank led 44-26.

MEG restarted positively and got some points through Jinu Thomas and Ajay but it hardly made any difference as Uppar, with his pin-point shots from outside the area, kept Vijaya Bank ahead 65-36 after the third quarter. The last quarter was a mere formality for Vijaya Bank as they kept possession and saw the game through, with the scores reading 85-62.
DH News Service

Result: Vijaya Bank: 85 (Anil Kumar 26, Arvind Arumugam 16) bt Madras Engineering Group: 62 (Ajay Joseph 14, S Subbaiah 10 points).  Final standings: Vijaya Bank 1; Army Service Corps 2; Young Orions 3; Madras Engineering Group 4; Beagles 5; JSC 6; Sports Hostel 7; KSP 8; Indiranagar BC 9.