PANAJI
Despite rain delays, the finals of the BOSCO CUP 2026 State Youth Basketball Championship got underway at the Don Bosco Fatorda basketball ground, organised under the aegis of the Goa Basketball Association. The tournament, aimed at selecting top talent for the upcoming youth nationals in Pune later this year.
After three days of knockout action, both the girls’ and boys’ finals saw the same matchup — Don Bosco Sports Academy Fatorda (DBSA) against Sonics Porvorim — with the home side registering comfortable wins in both categories.
In the girls’ final, Sonics Porvorim made a strong start and led 6-5 after the first quarter. However, DBSA took complete control in the second quarter, outscoring their opponents 23-4 to open up a decisive lead. From there, the Fatorda side maintained their dominance to seal a convincing 46-18 victory. Aanora Gracias led the scoring with 18 points, while Bianca Pereira added 12 and was named MVP for her sharp shooting. Eneira fought a lone battle for Sonics with 11 points.
The boys’ final followed a similar pattern, with DBSA Fatorda dominating from start to finish to secure a 67-30 win over Sonics. Despite early foul trouble, Aaron Ponraj starred with 25 points and was the top scorer of the final. He was well supported by Sean Fernandes (19 points), while David Xavier impressed with his defensive effort and overall impact to earn the MVP award. Nathaniel top-scored for Sonics with 13 points.
Remarkably, the DBSA boys had already played two matches earlier in the day, defeating teams from Bangalore and Mumbai to clinch the Global Cup at Manohar Parrikar Stadium before returning to win the state title.
Rector Fr Ralin de Souza, along with Goa Basketball Association office-bearers Olencio Dias, Helen Pinto, Sonali Raut and Dean D’Gama, were present for the prize distribution ceremony.
