SABA Championship basketball: India defeat Sri Lanka 114-48
The Indian basketball team has now won both its matches. India will face Bangladesh in their last match on Friday.
The men’s Indian basketball team registered its second win at the South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Championship 2021, with a resounding 114-48 victory over defending champions Sri Lanka on Wednesday.
With two wins in two matches, India have now consolidated their place at the top of the four-nation points table and boast a point difference of +123. They defeated the Maldives on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, second-placed Sri Lanka have one win and a loss and a point difference of -55.
Playing at the Shaheed Suhrawardy Indoor Stadium in Dhaka, the Indian team, ranked 78 in the world, faced little resistance from 132nd-ranked Sri Lanka, building a big lead in the opening minutes and ended the first quarter with a 30-17.
The second quarter also witnessed a similar scoring pattern, with five-time SABA champions India adding 28 more points while Sri Lanka managing 15.
The Vishesh Bhriguvanshi-led Indian team’s superior offence and defence meant the Lankan cagers could only score 16 points in the last two quarters whereas India scored 56 and ended the match with a lead of 66 points.
India will now face hosts Bangladesh in the last match of the SABA Championship on Friday.