Defending champions Southern Railway lived up to their reputation as they kicked off their campaign in style with a 90-59 win over Maharashtra in the women’s category of the 7th All India Savio Cup basketball tournament here on Monday.
Geethu Anna Jose led from the front and top scored for her side with 27 points as Maharashtra slumped to their second consecutive defeat at Don Bosco.
Maharashtra lost half the battle in the first quarter itself as the southern outfit raced off to 15-point lead. The Railway players hardly broke any sweat and it looked like they were having a stroll in the park. Accurate shooting by the Railway side and a tight defence saw them keep their opponents at bay and they didn’t give away a single point in the first few minutes.
Riding on the experience of Geethu and S Kolika, the holders established a lead of 20 points in the first quarter itself. It just got from bad to worse for Maharashtra as they were trailing 24-49 at the halfway mark. Though they were not a full strength squad, Geethu’s presence bolstered the Railway attack as she not only scored at regular intervals but also created a lot of opportunities for her teammates. Renu Mourya and Manisha Dange tried their best to counterattack but could not sustain it. The final quarter saw an array of three-pointers from the state side but it was too little too late.
RESULTS
WOMEN: Southern Railway 90 (Geethu Anna Jose 27, S Kokila 23, P Anitha 12) bt Maharashtra 59 (Renu Mourya 15, RK Smruthi 13)
MEN: ONGC 70 (Vishesh Braghuwanshi 23) bt Services 48 (Narendra Grewal 13); Railways 77 (Gagandeep Singh 21) bt Maharashtra 55 (Shamsher Makrani 20)
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