Basketball: Impressive gains for Wayanad girls

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By winning against Delhi University in the All India University Basketball Championship, Jeena P.S. and Neenamol P.S. of Kannur University made up for the disappointment in the lost previous game against Madras University in the semi-final.

“In the semifinal, we led a floppy attack. We had defeated the same Madras University team for a score of 70-52 in the South Zone Inter University held in Kannur,” says Neenamol.

However, Kannur team went ahead to win bronze by defeating Delhi, 64-47. Jeena (179 cm tall) and Neenamol (170 cm tall), the two national team campers from Kerala, led the attack for Kannur scoring 14 and 16 points each.

The duo, studying in Kannur are natives of Wayanad. They were in Wayanad to participate in the State Senior Basketball Championship.

Before the University Championship, Jeena had participated in the first FIBA 3x3 Youth World Championship held at Italy and became the top scorer with 37 points for India.

Both have represented India in the Asian Championships held in Thailand and Japan.

“Participating in internationals has always been a challenge. The game is totally different in foreign countries and we can learn a lot of new techniques. The new format of FIBA 3x3 youth world championship was also a different experience,” says Jeena.

The 3x3 Basketball is the formalised version of three-on-three, half-court basketball and it was the first world championship held.

“We had a camp in Delhi for three weeks under a foreign coach before the championship. It is a fast-paced game and we were able to finish only 16. But the experience we gained was great, especially in the match against USA,” says Jeena. Jeena was the only Malayali in the four-member team.

Neenamol thinks that the game in the country needs drastic changes to compete with foreign teams.

“I was astonished to see the facilities in Thailand, when I went for Asian Championship. The players were also better in physique and technique. With just a single international exposure, I understood how much more we have to improve,” says Neenamol.

Neenamol was handpicked from St Marys High School Mullankolly team to Kannur SAI Centre while Jeena started her career as a high jumper and later switched to basketball.