PG Manoj Sisodia has his eyes set on the rim against China. The youngest player on the squad, he was also India’s most efficient performer. Image credit: FIBA Asia

Bengaluru, 29 October 2015: The Indian U16 boys’ team had its task cut out facing three time defending champions China at the 4^th FIBA Asia U16 Championship that tipped off in Jakarta, Indonesia earlier today. India started off neck and neck, trailing China 9-10 midway through the first period, but couldn’t sustain the momentum; as its consistent opponents went on to clinch the 116-57 win.

While the Chinese lads got the opening win, their Asian neighbours had key positives of their own. Keeping the larger picture of qualifying to the next round in mind, Head Coach MS Rathore sensibly rotated the bench to give playing time to all 12 members of the squad. Three Indian players ended up with double digit scores, led by captain P Baladhaneshwar’s 18 points. Point guard Manoj Sisodia showcased his defensive anticipation with 6 steals, which was the main reason behind India outperforming China in this statistical category (14-10). Sisodia, who is also the youngest player on the Indian team at 14 years of age, ended as India’s most efficient performer.

India next faces another strong team, when it takes on Democratic People’s Republic of Korea tomorrow afternoon at 4:30pm IST, followed by the final preliminary league match against Iraq the next day.

India (P Baladhaneshwar 18 pts, Manoj Singh Sisodia 11 pts & 6 steals, Harshwardhan Tomar 11 pts) lost to China (Rongqi Huang 22 pts, Rongzhen Zhu 14 pts, Yufeng Han 13 pts) 57-116 [21-33, 12-33, 12-33, 12-27, 12-23]

INDIAN CONTINGENT FOR THE 2015 FIBA ASIA U16 CHAMPIONSHIP

Indian U16 Boys Basketball Team. Standing L to R: Head Coach MS Rathore, Adarsh Premsan Jayakumar, Swapnil Sharma, Harshwardhan Tomar, Kanwar Gurbaz Singh Sandhu, Muhammad Shiras Noushad, Baladhaneshwar Poiyamozhi, Assistant Coach Aju Jacob. Sitting L to R: Joshua Jaison George, Ankit Joshi, Manish Singh Sisodia, Amit, Hansraj, Sorav Singha.

*PG – Point Guard / Feeder, G – Guard, F – Forward, G/F – Wing, PF – Power Forward, C – Centre, PF/C – Pivot

13) Team Manager:  Mr Venkata Siva Naga Prasad Takasi (Andhra Pradesh)

14) Head Coach: Mr Mahendra Singh Rathore (Gujarat)

15) Assistant Coach: Mr Aju Jacob (Kerala)

16) Team Physio: Dr. Binish Babu (Karnataka)

Preliminary Round Groups

Group A: Japan, Kuwait, Hong Kong, Malaysia

Group B: Chinese Taipei, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Lebanon

Group C: Philippines, Bahrain, Democratic Republic of Korea and Thailand

Group D: China, India, Korea and Iraq

India’s Upcoming Championship schedule*

Preliminary Round

vs Korea- 30^th October, 16:30 IST (18:00 local time). Venue: GOR Pulogadung

vs Iraq- 31^st October, 16:30 IST (18:00 local time). Venue: GOR Pulogadung

Second Round will be held between 1^st and 3^rd November

Final Round will be played on 5^th, 6^th and 7^th November.

*See below for tournament format, history, and India’s past participation.

About the 4^th FIBA Asia U16 Championship for Boys 2015

Venues

(Sourced verbatim from: http://www.fiba.com/asia/u16/2015/venues)

The 2015 FIBA Asia U16 Championship will be staged in 2 different venues, both located in Jakarta, Indonesia. The primary venue will be the Britama Arena, Sportsmall Kelapa Gading and the secondary venue will be GOR Pulogadung.

As per the competition schedule, 41 games will be played in the primary venue (Britama Arena) and 21 in the secondary venue (GOR Pulogadung). (Total of 62 games)

The Championship is also expected to be streamed live here: http://www.livebasketball.tv/

Competition Format

(Sourced verbatim from: http://www.fiba.com/asia/u16/2015/competition-format)

Group phase (16 teams, 6 days)

Day 1 to 3: The first round of the tournament will be played in a round robin format, with the sixteen (16) teams divided into four (4) groups of four (4) teams. Every team will take on its three (3) opponents in its respective group.

The top three (3) teams from each group advance to the second phase. Others will play Classification Games 13-16 (on Day 4 and 5).

Day 4 to 6: For the second round, the twelve (12) remaining teams will be divided into two (2) groups of six (6). Each team will play against the three (3) new teams in its group.
The top four (4) teams from each group advance to the Quarter-Finals. Others play Classification Games 9-12.

Day 7: Rest day.

Final phase (day 8 to 10)
The tournament will be played in a knockout format from the Quarter-Finals onwards.
Day 8: Quarter-Finals and Classification Games 9-12.
Day 9: Semi-Finals and Classification Games 11-12, 9-10 and 5-8.
Day 10: Final, Third-Place Game and Classification Games 7-8 and 5-6.

Competition history & India’s participation

Prior to the upcoming iteration, 3 editions of this biennial championship have been held so far, dating back to 2009. China has won all three editions, followed by South Korea (2 silver), Philippines (1 silver) and Japan (2 bronze).

India has participated in all three editions so far. The side finished 10^th in 2009 and 2011, and 11^th in 2013. The Indian team is currently ranked 51 in the world.