Sahil, Bala, Vishal share 62 points as India clear Thai test

NAGPUR: Continuing from where they left in their qualifying round, India put up a brilliant performance to open their campaign in the 24th Fiba Asia U-18 Basketball Championship with a seven-point (100-93) win over a tricky Thailand outfit in Tehran, Iran, on Friday.
Playing well within themselves, the 52nd ranked Indian outfit did nothing extraordinary, but did nothing stupid either.Making most of their average height and a fine combination of shooting guards with lanky Centre, India played aggressively to score 20 second chance and added 17 turnover points for a handy 14-point lead at the breather.
With a positive start India jumped to 8-point lead at the end of first quarter while stretched the advantage further to 14 points by dominating the second 28-22. After the change of ends, Thailand fought hard to close the gap by winning the third and fourth quarters 18-20 and 25-30 respectively but failed to stop India's timely conversion to lose their tournament opener by seven points.
Tallest Indian cager, Vishal Kumar Gupta emerged as the most effective player for the team. The 6-foot-6 Uttar Pradesh forward recorded his first double-double with 16 points and 14 rebounds and was also effective in a couple of assists and did three crucial blocks to hog the limelight.
Shooting guards Sahil (25) and skipper Baladhaneshwar Poiyamozhi (21) from Haryana and Tamil Nadu combined well to share 46 points between them. Of the eight long rangers that he took, Sahil converted five three-pointers while Baladhaneshwar was at his shooting best from the paint. Chennai's Hariram Ragupathy contributed 17 points and Rajasthan's power forward Mohammed Ali - in his 21-minute stay on the floor - added 15 points to give India a rollicking start.
Thailand's American-born forward Justin Bassey emerged as the top scorer with 20 points and skipper S Suwan netted 17. While India out-rebounded Thailand 45-31 they had a better conversion ratio 56-51 to kick start their campaign on a winning note.
On Saturday, this exciting bunch of Indian cagers will be up against China for their biggest test in the Asia. The defending champions thrashed Iraq 93-28 in their opening clash.
RESULT: India (Sahil 25, Baladhaneshwar Poiyamozhi 21, Hariram Ragupathy 17, Vishal Gupta 16, Mohammed Ali 15) bt Thailand (Justin Bassey 20, Suwichai Suwan 17, Natthaworn Banchathon 16, Pongsatorn Tabtim 13, Attapong Leelaphipatkul 10) 100-93 (29-21, 28-22, 18-20, 25-30).