The U19 boys went to Oberoi International School’s Goregaon campus, where they had one goal. After a loss in a tournament last week, the boys knew they needed a win in this one. Despite the boys’ team consisting mainly of U-17 players, they were undeterred and ready to win. The first day consisted of the group stage games, and the second of the knockout. Our first game was against Oberoi OGC’s B team.
On paper, it seemed like an easy win. In reality, it was anything but. From the first whistle, both teams battled fiercely, matching each other basket for basket, stop for stop. But in the third quarter, we found our rhythm, surging ahead with a 12-point lead. Even then, we knew the game was far from over. Oberoi fought back with a series of three-pointers, closing the gap. The pressure mounted, but we stayed composed, countering with crucial baskets of our own. When the final buzzer sounded, we had secured the win (44-33).
After a few moments of rest, we stepped back onto the court again, this time against JBCN. This one was dominated by Ascend from the start. We controlled the tempo and scored baskets without any trouble, securing the victory (26-15). With two wins, we knew we only needed two more. We would need to rest and save our energy for the next day, when we hoped we would be walking home with the trophy.
At the same time, 20 minutes away, at Oberoi International JVLR, the U-19 girls found themselves desperate to defend their title as “champions”, hoping for a repeat of the previous year. Although the path to knockouts was less tiring, our qualification entirely depended on one game, increasing the pressure. Unlike the boys’ games, the group stages and knockout games, including the finals, occurred in one day. As we geared up on the spacious balcony outside the gym, we prepared ourselves to face Oberoi OGC’s B team, on our first step to the finals.
From the jump, it seemed like our game, with Ascend scoring within seconds, and leaving the other team behind with fast breaks. We dominated the game and eventually settled in, relaxing content with the final score of 16-0. We were in the semis. To be completely honest, we were expecting rather than praying for this outcome, and that made us confident going into the semis. In actuality, the better word is overconfident.
In the semis, we faced the home team, Oberoi JVLR. Based on previous encounters, we had more wins head-to-head, and the team looked far younger than our seasoned players. However, it ended up being a nail-biting game. Similar to the first game, Ascend took the lead in the beginning, and were up 5-0 at the end of the first quarter. But as the clock ticked on, both teams began putting up baskets, and our lead was almost lost. The 3rd quarter of that game might have been one of the worst we’ve played as a team, reducing our lead from 7 points to 2 with the score being 13-11 to Ascend. After the coach called a timeout, we sat on the bench, our lack of ambition to win evident. However, after an effective pep talk, we finally began playing to our potential in the last 5 minutes of the fourth quarter, with some clutch shots and fastbreaks pushing us into action. We left the final score 19-12 heading into the finals, but only after a performance none of us were truly proud of.
Walking into the finals felt like deja vu, against Oberoi OGC’s A team, exactly like last time before we’d beat them in November at another tournament. While we all had butterflies in our stomachs, we tried our very best not to let it show, ending the first quarter in our favor 5-1. However, after going head-to-head so many times, the second quarter showed their knowledge of our skills and superior defense strategy. They prevented fast-breaks, our primary form of scoring, while also maintaining a perpetual full-court press, never allowing the ball handlers to drive and forcing shots outside the key. This was a huge blow for us because even though we had superiority in terms of the quality of players, they had multiple tall players who almost always got rebounds. We’d receive the ball, trudge through the full-court press, only to face two or more 5 ‘9 players ready to guard the post. By the end of the second quarter, not only had we lost our lead, but once the floodgates opened, we were letting shots in left and right, without making any of our own. At halftime, we were down 4, then 6, and while 3 baskets don’t sound that much, staring at the scoreboard at 18-12 made it seem like a whole lot more. The final score was 19-26, with OIS OGC winning the tournament.
What we realised after the game was that on most occasions, the result simply comes down to “who wants it more,” and while we had every reason to want it far more than our opponents, we didn’t play like it, and it was a deserved loss. Nonetheless, we still came in second place, securing the silver medal and proving our dominance in our category throughout the tournament, even at our worst. Though we fell short of defending our title, the experience strengthened our determination to come back stronger next time.
The next morning, the boys team reported at 7:30 A.M., ready for battle. The semi-final awaited. The opponent: Jamnabai International. While we knew Jamnabai was an easier opponent and were expecting to win, we still went into the match with effort, hoping to play our hearts out. The match immediately started in our favor. The shots we put up in practice were coming in use. We found ourselves soaring above Jamnabai by the end of the half. At this point, the match slowed down, and while Jamnabai had their eyes set on beating us, the lead was too large for them to cover, with the score ending 36-20. We had just secured our spot in the finals against Dhirubhai Ambani.
We found ourselves face to face with the tall players of Ambani, moments before the jump ball. As the ball was thrown in the air, the game commenced. The atmosphere was electric, the crowd on its feet, .The first quarter started as an even matchup, both our players and Ambani players trading baskets, ending the period with a tight lead of 3 points. The way we played in the second quarter would shape the outcome of the game. Disappointed with our performance, our coach set us straight during the break, providing us with the momentum we needed to take this game home. Yajat Daga started the quarter going 5/5 from the field, giving us a ten-point lead, forcing a timeout from Ambani. Although the timeout broke our momentum slightly, our chemistry was on point, and our energy was a level above theirs. From there on we never looked back, Daga leading the way, scoring an impressive 31 of our 49 points, helping us to victory (49-29).
As we lifted the trophy, we remembered all the hard work and sacrifices we had made to reach this stage. We were elated and happy to finally win a tournament in 2025. We knew there would be more tournaments to come, and after enjoying this win, we would need to step back into our practice to ensure we have a shot at all of the tournaments to come.
