The tournament is being held annually and this edition will feature open club level competition in the men´s category, said GAA Vice President Mahendra Shakya. Women´s basketball tournament was held in September earlier this year but the men´s category was postponed due to some technical problem. “Better late than never,” said Shakya, who is also the general secretary of Nepal Basketball Association (NeBA).
The basketball tournament is also a continuation of youth oriented program of GAA. “We are looking for talented players to form a good national team,” said Shakya. “Although this is an open competition, we have requested national players to give an opportunity to the newcomers.”
Shakya lamented that basketball tournaments are Kathmandu-centric and there is a need to spread the competitions to other parts of the nation as well. “It is not possible to reach the pinnacle if the base is not wide,” he said.
The tournament will be held in league-cum-knockout format. The first round will be the league round in which 13 teams will participate. The inaugural match will be held between defending champions Golden Gate and Public Youth Campus (PYC) at 8 a.m. on Thursday. The other league rounds will be held on Friday and Sunday at the GAA Hall.
The quarterfinals will be held on December 28 on knockout basis at the same venue whereas the semifinals and the final will be held at St Xavier´s School, Jawalakhel, on December 29 and 31 respectively.
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