Sri Lanka, Oct. 28 -- Sri Lanka's Girls 33 basketball team achieved their best-ever result in Asian Youth Games history, finishing among the top eight teams in Asia despite a brave 9-18 defeat to powerful China in the quarter-finals of the 3rd Asian Youth Games held in Manama, Bahrain yesterday.

Team captain Binuthi Jayasinghe once again carried Sri Lanka's hopes, scoring all nine points in the quarter-final against China. She was Sri Lanka's standout player throughout the tournament and ended as the team's highest point scorer.

Binuthi's individual brilliance shone in every game, often taking on much stronger opponents almost single-handedly. Observers noted that if Sri Lanka had another player of her calibre, the islanders could have ...