Indian School Basketball League 2016 Launched

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• Indian School Basketball League is set to tip off in 16 cities/states across India in August 2016.

• The league will start BFI’s development programs to create hierarchal system of participation that allows the players, coaches and referees to gain experience and develop their talents. 

• Approximately 1,856 matches will be played over a 2-3 month period, culminating in a National Finals to be held in one of the participating States/Cities.

• FIBA recently conducted a FIBA New Competition Format Workshop in New Delhi 24^th & 25^th June 2016, the details were discussed during the Steering Committee Meeting

• Karnataka was allotted the 33^rd Youth National Basketball Championships and will conduct during November 2016.

• Pondicherry was allotted the 67^th Senior National Basketball Championship and will conduct from the 7^th to 14^th January 2017

Bengaluru, 7^th July, 2016:  After a one year hiatus, the Indian School Basketball League will re-launch in August 2016 in a bigger and better fashion.  The 2016 edition will only feature the School level and the will create a structured, self-sustaining, pan-India School League, which will serve as the platform to increase organized basketball participation at grassroots level and subsequently as the talent development/feeder system for the Indian National Teams, and for the eventual Professional Basketball League in India.   This decision was taken after the Steering Committee of the BFI met on 6^th July 2016 to finalize the details of the league.

Creating a hierarchical system of basketball participation, starting with the school leagues, is key to the long-term growth of basketball across India.  To ensure the sustenance of the leagues, it is imperative to start small, focusing on the high basketball potential cities, perfecting the operations while showing its value and potential to the community, and then slowly transitioning to pan India leagues which include newer basketball cities.

The leagues will also serve a vital role in development of school basketball infrastructure and ancillary basketball disciplines as programs will be implemented to develop all areas of the game through this platform.

In future years, a U-14 School League will be introduced focusing on having fun and basic fundamentals.  Therein, the BFI will slowly expand the league ensuring efficient and proper execution, eventually creating three schools leagues, U-14, U-16, and U-19.

The basic structure of the 2016 Indian School Basketball League is as follows:

• 16 States

• 12-16 teams per city per gender divided into 4 groups

• Some States will focus Year 1 in 1 city while others will spread out the groups across multiple cities

• Each team will play home-and-away system within their own group

• Top 2 teams from each group will play a State /City Final

• Winner will be invited to a National Championship

• Prize Money – Total Rs. 1 lakh per city

City List

• Punjab

• Chandigarh

• Uttar Pradesh

• Delhi

• Maharashtra

• Tamil Nadu

• Karnataka

• Kerala

• Telangana

• West Bengal

• Gujarat

• Chhattisgarh

• Madhya Pradesh

• Andhra Pradesh

• Rajasthan

• Mizoram

Total Matches

S. No Category Matches/City School # Cities Total Matches 1 City Phase 112 16 1,792 2 National Championship 64 1 64 Total 1,856

Other Steering Committee Highlights:

1. Discussions were held on the FIBA New Competitions Format Workshop, which was conducted in New Delhi on 24^th & 25^thJune 2016.  FIBA, starting in 2017, will implement a home-and-away system of Qualification for major FIBA and FIBA Asia events, similar to that of FIFA.  The system will only be for the Senior Men category.

2. The 33^rd Youth National Basketball Championship was allocated to Karnataka, Hassan District and will be conducted in November 2016.

3. The 67^th Senior National Basketball Championship will be held in Pondicherry from 7^th to 14^th January 2017.

About Basketball Federation of India

The Basketball Federation of India or BFI is the governing and controlling body of basketball in India, and is responsible for the development and promotion of the sport at all levels. BFI has been involved in conducting camps, clinics, events, and training sessions at its academies for the development of basketball. BFI came into being in 1935 and took complete control over Indian basketball in 1950. Prior to that time, the Indian Olympic Association handled the conduct of Indian basketball championships. Since 1950, the BFI has been conducting various such championships, from the grassroots to senior team participation in international tournaments. In addition, the BFI has been responsible for the establishment of strong sub-junior and junior level programs. The BFI has to its credit produced several international players of repute, among them 17 have been bestowed with the honour of Arjuna Awards. Earlier in June 2015, 19-year-old Satnam Singh Bhamara made history by becoming the first Indian national to be drafted by an NBA team, when he was selected by the Dallas Mavericks. More information at www.basketballfederationindia.org.