Team Loyala emerge Hyderabad Edition champion

Hyderabad: Secunderabad Club, Hyderabad witnessed the first ever Hyderabad edition of Red Bull Reign - a Global 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament in India. In some exhilarating display of quick-pace basketball amongst the 32 teams, Team Loyala beat their opponents Team Eagles 21-20 in the finals to clinch the Hyderabad qualifiers.

In the run-up to title clash, Team Loyala beat Air Bourne in the first semi-final 16-8 and Team Eagles beat Saints 14-13 in the second semifinal. The Hyderabad city winners will now battle it out at the national finals in Mumbai in the first week of June, and the India winner will move on to represent the country at the World Finals later in the year.

With a unique format lending itself to no downtime after made baskets to take a breather or get set on defense — plus no time to celebrate — Red Bull Reign is a test of stamina, endurance while trying to accumulate the most points possible to outlast the opponents within the given time (10mins).

Open for men who are above 16 years, Red Bull Reign uses a unique set of rules based on the game play of the FIBA rules. The FIBA 3 on 3 rules are: Half-court game; Each team shall consist of 4 players (3 players on the court and 1 substitution); The first team which scores 21 points or more wins the game if it happens before the end of regular playing time. The basketball tournament started on April 6 and is being held across 12 cities in India Chennai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Goa, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, Aizawl, Guwahati, Delhi, Ludhiana and Jaipur. The city winners will battle it out at the national finals in Mumbai in the first week of June and the India winner will move on to represent the country at the World Finals later in the year.

Red Bull has brought on-board Pursuit India as a partner to manage tournament operations across the country. Pursuit India is a leading sports management company in the sport of Basketball in India.

Vishnu Ravi Shankar, CEO – Pursuit India, said "We are excited to partner with Red Bull as they bring Red Bull Reign, their flagship 3x3 tournament to India. We feel that Red Bull Reign will promote basketball in India on multiple levels, as the format enables amateurs to compete on a national platform and the high-octane pace of the game will exhilarate spectators." With this initiative, Red Bull aims to create a new fan base for basketball in India by promoting basketball at a grassroots level and through wider outreach plans for both viewers and players.