Dimapur, 17 June (MTNews): Exciting and closely contested finals marked the closing of the All Nagaland Inter College Basketball Tourney on Friday with Kohima Science College and Immanuel College Dimapur emerging champions in the Women’s and Men’s categories respectively.
Keoshu Yimkhiung, MLA and Advisor, Youth Resources and Sports graced the closing ceremony as the special guest and gave away the trophies. It would be significant to mention that the MLA received a huge round of applause from the players and spectators as he arrived for the closing ceremony without any fanfare or fuss. The MLA arrived in one car and was accompanied by one bodyguard and his Personal Assistant.
The tournament was sponsored by the Department of Youth Resources and Sports, Government of Nagaland, and hosted by the Dimapur District Basketball Association.
The Kohima Science College (KSC) women’s team managed to scrape past favorites Sazolie College Kohima with a 32-28 win. KSC defense was the decisive factor in their win as the team rallied around Sosenteta who was adjudged the Most Valuable Player in the women’s category.
The 3-day tournament that has witnessed close contests from the very start ended with a befitting Men’s finale with Immanuel College beating the National Institute of Technology (NIT) in 5-minute added time. NIT was ahead for most part of the match but Immanuel College refused to be bogged down.
In the last quarter of the match, Immanuel College edged past NIT, but by the end of the regulation time, the scores were tied. In the added five minutes, both teams looked exhausted but Immanuel College didn’t waste shots and defended with bulldog tenacity to deny NIT the win. The match ended at 85-81 in favor of Immanuel College.
The winners in both the Women’s and Men’s categories were awarded Rs 40,000 each with trophies and certificates. The runner-ups bagged Rs 25,000 each with trophies and certificates.
Semi-finalists Tetso College and Unity College (Women’s), and SASRD and Oriental College (Men’s) went home with Rs 10,000 each. The MVPs were awarded Rs 10,000 each along with trophies and certificates.
The All Nagaland Inter College Basketball Tournament was officiated by Senior Referee Rajib Kumar Sarma and Rokky Routh of the Basketball Federation of India.