Published: November 3, 2026 at 10:17 pm
Tamil Nadu cruised to a comfortable victory over Karnataka, while Uttar Pradesh boys had to dig deep into their reserve to overcome Madhya Pradesh and emerge champions of the 41st Youth National Basketball Championship at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi, Pune, on Tuesday.
Telangana girls settled for a 6th place after going down rather tamely to Haryana 52-75 while the boys just about managed to retain a position in Level 1 albeit losing to Punjab and finishing at 10th place.
The boys’ final was an engrossing affair as both teams dished out an exhilarating show on the court. The teams went neck-and-neck in the quest for supremacy.
Karnataka women & Uttar Pradesh men march into 41st Youth National Basketball finals
Uttar Pradesh boys had to dig deep into their reserves to ward off a stiff challenge from Madhya Pradesh before they finally prevailed 76-71. Darshil Singh topscored with 26 points to lead Uttar Pradesh home. Jatin Sharma got 21 and P Pavan scored 12 points for Uttar Pradesh.
For Madhya Pradesh, Prashanth Singh did the bulk of the scoring as he garnered 26 points, while Kunal Bharya got 15, Akshay Khanchi 12 and Anshul Singh 11.
Uttar Pradesh boys overcame a fighting Madhya Pradesh to win the final 76-71 at the 1st Youth National Basketball Championship at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi, Pune, on Tuesday
The third place in the boys’ category was grabbed by Rajasthan, who defeating Tamil Nadu 90-69. The Rajasthan boys made short work of Tamil Nadu. Akshay Nayak and Jai Sharma got 28 points each as the Rajasthan hoopsters were unstoppable. Bhanu Pratap Singh chipped in with 14 points.
Srinivasan Murugesan got 18, while Kaushik Raj got 17 and Athithan scored 13 points for Tamil Nadu.
Tamil Nadu girls dominate Karnataka
In the girls’ final, Tamil Nadu brooked no challenge as he ran over Karnataka 85-60 to post a rather one-sided victory and take home the title.
Tamil Nadu girls were a class above their rivals in the Southern Derby. Nakshatra did the most damage for Tamil Nadu as she was all over the Karnataka. Nakshatra scored 25 points while Kaviya and Sumuthra Devi got 15 points apiece. For Karnataka, Aanchal topscored with 22 points, while Mahek Sharma and Vibha got 12 each.
In the third-place playoff, Kerala dominated hosts Maharashtra on way to a 74-42 victory. Amye Anne Johnson was the star performer for Kerala as she scored 16 points and Anna Mariam got 12. Malavika and Theerrtha got 11 each as Kerala ran away with the game. Sita Bhosale got 8 and Tanvi an equal number of points for Maharashtra.
Haryana proved a handful for Telangana girls in the fifth-place playoff. Haryana girls dominated the proceedings as the Telangana girls had no answer to their onslaught. Anshitha Jain scored 22 points, while Jahnavi got 18 and Kanika 16. Angel chipped in with 10 points for the winners. Mythri Reddy topscored for Telangana with 16 points as Charitha Sree got 14 and Saanvi Kolisetty 10 points.
Southern teams bagged four places among the top six states.
Results: Boys final: Uttar Pradesh 76 (Darshil Singh 26, Jatin Sharma 21, Pavan P 12) beat Madhya Pradesh 71 (Prasanth Singh 26, Kunal Bharyi 15, Akshay Khanchi 12, Anshul Singh 11).
Third place playoff: Rajasthan 90 (Akshay Nayak 28, Jai Sharma 28, Bhanu Pratap Singh 14) beat Tamil Nadu 69 (Srinivasan Murugesan 18, Kaushik Raj 17, Athithan 13).
Girls (final): Tamil Nadu 85 (Nakshatra 25, Kaviya 15, Sumuthra Devi 15) beat Karnataka 60 (Mahek Sharma 12, Vibha 12, Aanchal 22).
Third place playoff: Kerala 74 (Amye Anne Johnson 16, Anna Mariam 12, Malavika 11, Theerrtha 11) beat Maharashtra 42 (Sita Bhosale 8, Tanvi 8).
Fifth place playoff: Haryana 75 (Angel 10, Anshitha Jain 22, Kanika 16, Jahnavi 18) beat Telangana 52 (Mythri Reddy 16, Charitha Sree 14, Saanvi Kolisetty 10).
