BENGALURU: The crowd erupted as Manmeet Kaur opened the scoring with a two-pointer inside the first minute, briefly raising hopes of a competitive outing for Indian Railways. But that proved to be the hosts’ only lead as South Korea’s KB Stars cruised to an 81-42 victory in the FIBA Women’s Basketball League Asia at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium courts here on Wednesday.The defeat was Railways’ second in the group stage, with the Pushpa Senthil Kumar-led side finding the going tough against a more cohesive opponent. Playing in their maiden WBL Asia campaign, the Indians struggled to convert scoring opportunities as KB Stars seized control.Manmeet topped the Railways’ scoring with 17 points, while skipper Pushpa contributed nine. For KB Stars, captain Yunjeong Na led with 18 points, setting the pace for the Korean outfit.Despite the widening deficit, Railways continued to fight, drawing encouragement from their vocal supporters who cheered every basket. However, the Koreans’ superior execution and ability to capitalise on the rebounds ensured there was little chance of a comeback.The Railways had endured an even tougher outing on Tuesday, suffering a 35-119 drubbing from Japan’s Denso Iris.In the other match on Wednesday, Chinese Taipei’s Cathay Life Tigers bounced back from their opening-day defeat to hand the Philippines’ Akari Sparks an 85-75 loss.Results: Life Tigers (Tai) 85 (Penina 22, Chu Chu 14) bt Sparks (Phi) 75 (Saicha 21, Shakira 17); KB Stars (Kor) 81 (Yunjeong 18, Yunha 12) bt Railways (Ind) 42 (Manmeet 17, Pushpa 9).On Tuesday: Sichuan (Chn) 92 (Sara 27, Chennedy 22) bt Life Tigers (Tpe) 77 (Chu Chu 16, Hui Ju-liu 14); Denso (Jpn) 119 (Haruna 23, Minami 16, Moshirashi 16) bt Railways (Ind) 35 (Darshani 6, Pushpa S Kumar 5).
