Pic1: Hyderabad Sky and Bengaluru Beast players in action during the Season 3 opener of the UBA Pro Basketball League.
Pic2: Mahipal Singh from Hyderabad Sky and Rajan Sharma from Bengaluru Bulls in action during the Season 3 opener of the UBA Pro Basketball League.
Balewadi Stadium - Pune, 15 July 2016: Hyderabad Sky were off to a solid start, beating Bengaluru Beast 84-75 in the UBA Pro Basketball League season-3 opener at the Balewadi Stadium on Friday.
Manu Thomas’ 11 blocks, along with 14 points, and Joginder Singh’s 24 points, were the highlights for Hyderabad boys, as Thomas earned the Player of the Game award. Loveneet Singh’s effort (25 points) for the Bengaluru team went in vein unfortunately.
The Hyderabad Sky boys made a strong comeback in the first quarter, having been kept on the back-foot at the start. Bengaluru Beast went up 7-2, and then 9-6 very quickly, before Hyderabad gathered some momentum and pace. Joginder Singh scored a couple of three pointers for Hyderabad, as they quickly turned the deficit into a lead, finishing the first quarter at 25-21.
Their lead almost came undone in the second quarter, with Hyderabad Sky extending their lead (30-23), before the Bengaluru Beast scored some quick points, thanks mainly to Loveneet Singh’s three-pointers in quick succession. Hyderabad Sky, however, maintained their lead going into half time at 43-40. Hyderabad’s six-foot, nine-inch newcomer Manu Thomas was in top gear, coming up with brilliant blocks time and again in the second quarter, denying some precious points to Bengaluru in the process.
The Bengaluru Beasts managed to cut down on their errors in the third quarter, and were rewarded immediately. The absence of Manu Thomas, following the tall man’s fourth foul of the game, helped Bengaluru, and they made use of it with some quick aggressive moves. Loveneet Singh’s smart two-pointer towards the end helped the Beast's finish with a slender one-point lead (63-62) going into the final quarter.
So, it was all set for a tight finish, and it was the Hyderabad side that held nerve when it mattered. A three-pointer by Joginder Singh, his sixth of the day, followed by another one by Mahesh, opening up the lead for Hyderabad Sky. The lead soon became 10 points with under five minutes of play left. It was all about the right pace and maintaining the lead from here on, and Hyderabad Sky were able to see it through with timely two-pointers from Mahesh and Thomas.
Final score - Hyderabad Sky - 84 & Bengaluru Beast - 75