Defending champions India routed Bangladesh 142-71 for their third straight win at the fifth South Asian Basketball Association Championship, in Male on Tuesday.
India dominated the contest from the beginning, outscoring Bangladesh 36-9 in the very first quarter. They also had a bumper third quarter, dominating their opponents 45-13. Centre Amritpal Singh had his third straight game scoring over 20 points, with 22 in this contest. Veteran shooting guard Vishesh Bhriguvanshi also chipped in with 14 points of his own while controlling the flow of the game.
For Bangladesh, captain Kumar Biswas Mithun led the charge with 25 points and was ably supported by Khan Md. Shamsuzzamam with 22 points but the duo lacked support from the rest of the team.
Vishesh Bhriguvanshi was declared the player of the match. India will take on Nepal on the final day of the championship tomorrow. India had earlier defeated hosts Maldives 84-42 and Sri Lanka 88-61 and lie second in the standings behind Bangladesh, who have played all their four matches.
A win will not only ensure a fifth SABA title, but also qualification for the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup and 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian Qualifiers.
