. . . But Basketball
The basketball team did a complete nose-dive, much to the amazement of everyone concerned. For the second year, Dolly Stark had much the same group to work with, and even next year they are going to be back together again. The reference is to Capt. George Stangle, Henry Kraszewski, Bob Miller, "Goose" Goss, and Jake Edwards. They broke in together as freshmen and they have hit the varsity together, and the pressing question in Hanover is why they do not seem to click.
Around this nucleus other stars have been woven in and out of the combination. Irving Kramer bolstered the team for three years; then along came Wild Bill McCall with his flashy style; and lately Harold Mackey, a grand campaigner, has been doing brilliant work. But there is something about Dartmouth basketball that is bitterly disappointing, something lacking that we cannot perceive, and we can only wonder at the results as we see them in the gymnasium or as they come flashing across the telegraph wires from other cities.
This month's work includes losses to Princeton, Yale and Cornell. The latter two games were close affairs, and the time- worn adage is always applicable: a basketball team or an individual player may be "hot" for one game, and in that case nothing much can be done about it. You yourself have seen the countless shots which caromed off the hoop, the wild, frantic tosses which slithered through the basket, or the devastating foul which gave victory to the other team. Dartmouth has had its full share of the breaks, but it does seem as though something else is lacking in Dartmouth basketball which is wholly indefinable.
Now the first game to fit into this column this month is the Princeton affair, which was played before our very noses in Hanover. Princeton, last year's intercollegiate champions, had been a favorite to repeat under their new coach, Fritz Crisler. But Princeton had been defeated by Pennsylvania and swamped by Columbia, and the Tigers did not look potentially strong. On the other hand, Dartmouth had run up a tremendous total on Cornell, had pulled a sensational twenty point rally to win from Yale, and had battled Pennyslvania to a five-point game right down in the Palestra.
Then what happened? The Dartmouth five was shaken up before the game, and a new combination which included Parmer Maxwell was started against the Tigers. It was not a very exciting game, for after Dartmouth had thrown a foul to start the contest the Tigers jumped into a lead and ran out the remainder of the game as they pleased to win by a 40-25 score.
The explanation? Why, we sat down and wrote the game from the Princeton angle, pointing out bravely that the Tigers were a very good basketball team, which they were, and that two players, Ken Fairman and Grebauskas, happened to be "hot" for that particular evening, which was the truth. Grebauskas threw five goals, all from the center court region, and Fairman sunk six goals, three of which were long tosses. On the other hand, Dartmouth's shots would not sink.
Princeton built themselves an early lead in this fashion, and the half ended 15-9 in their favor. In the second half this was stretched to 22-16 before Dartmouth put on the semblance of a rally, and after that it was a case of matching point for point. The two outstanding players to date, to my mind, have been Harold Mackey and Bob Miller, and the latter is not a regular. Capt. Stangle is a good basketball player, and possible the finest leader we have had in many a year, and Kraszewski is a known veteran quantity.
Then came Carnival and the Yale game. We expected a battle in this case for Yale was the surprise team of the league. The Elis, not counted upon heavily at the start, had smashed Pennsylvania twice in surprising upsets, and their only loss had been suffered, ironically enough, at the Dartmouth hands.
The crowds packed into the gymnasium; they hung from the rafters; and it was estimated that the greatest Carnival audience seen in the place was on hand. Yale appeared, wearing their natty Blue uniforms and the many, many Yale men in the audience started organized cheering, a distinct innovation.
In a sensational, uproarious basketball game, Yale's five nosed out Dartmouth by a single point, 37-36, and when Earl Nikkei threw the winning basket with a minute to play it marked the first time that Yale had had the lead during the entire game!
In the several years that I have been covering basketball games, I cannot recall a more heartbreaking loss. Dartmouth had started out in whirlwind fashion. Led by the ever brilliant Mackey, the Green had whipped out a 9-0 lead at the very start. Stangle, Kraszewski collaborated in a quick-time, fast-moving program which had the spectators cheering with glee, and even a belated Yale first-half rally could not make much impression on the 23-17 lead at half time.
Miller was sent into the game in the second half, and another exhibition started which boomed the score to 32-19, the high watermark for Dartmouth during the game. It was unbelievable, and to the 2500 who were present it seemed as though they were about to be treated to the sight of the proud Yale team being pasted to a fare-thee-well.
And then it happened. Two new Yale men dashed into the game—Frank Elliott and Jim De Angelis. The same De Angelis who was hastily put at the running guard position last Fall for the Dartmouth game and helped his team to that 6-0 football victory. Only a sophomore, he started throwing points, along with Elliott.
Not serious at first, although the Yale men in the audience whooped it up as the baskets started to fall. Complacent Dartmouth sat back and watched with interest; it was a game rally. But Yale was pulling up, and from routine defense, Dartmouth was getting desperate. And when a team gets desperate, it loses its sense of proportion. Up, up came the score, and with a looping basket by Elliott to the rocking Yale cheers in the crowd, the horror stricken audience saw the score hinge in a 34-33 Dartmouth lead.
Cheers, exhortations, pandemonium. "Shoot, shoot," cries the crowd. Sid Krivitsky is sent in; Maxwell is sent in; Dartmouth begins to shuffle its lineup. Yale passes iuriously, gets down under the basket with frantic Mackey trying to stave oft the attack. Nikkei shoots, Saner shoots . . . the crowd gasps. One point! Then Krivitsky has the ball and he dribbles toward the basket and just as he is to crash out of bounds, he spread eagles himself for the shot . . . and it's IN! Boy, what a cheer! Dartmouth 36, Yale 33. Fighting, fighting Yale. A long Yale cheer booms out of the gallery. And Yale is again on the offensive, and there's the shot by Elliott and the shrill blast of a referee's whistle signifies that two points have been added to the score. But Dartmouth leads 36-35, and if that bell would only ring. Edwards goes back into the game, and Stangle is dogging Nikkei's heels as he has done all evening. Nikkei, the Yale ace, the Yale high scorer, has only thrown two baskets all evening, and both from the center court. Nice guarding work there, Stangle.
Just a minute to go. Yale tries anything. Shot after shot goes up to that board. Why doesn't Dartmouth get the ball? The spectators are all standing, cheering, yelling, girls are shrieking. The seconds tick.
Nikkei has the ball. He dribbles here and there, past Edwards, past Stangle, but they won't let him shoot. The little Yale star dribbles out toward center with Stangle almost hanging on to him. He is travelling fast. Down he goes, flat on the floor, sprawled out, but he holds that ball. Stangle, off balance, goes whirling by. Like a cat, Nikkei bounds up from the floor. He gauges, all in a second, and . . . horror . -. . shoots! Up goes the ball and down comes the ball ... a swish . . . and we sink heavily to our seats. "Yale, Yale, Yale," yell the Blues in the audience. Yale 37, Dartmouth 36. The bell rings and we file silently out.
Dartmouth had shot its bolt, but there still was a chance for honor, for the Green's next game was scheduled with Cornell, and Cornell had been the sorry doormat of the League. Dartmouth had scored 45 points on the Ithacans to open the league schedule. Columbia had beaten them twice, Yale had beaten them and Pennsylvania had beaten them. Cornell was in last place very definitely with five losses and no victories. So Dartmouth went out to Ithaca.
We hung around the telegraph office and waited for the returns. It came over the wire finally, "Cornell 38, Dartmouth 35; Cornell had a 14 point lead at half-time, which was too much to make up." That's all there was to the story, but it seems that Johnny Ferraro and Lou Hatkoff ran wild during the first half, and in the second half it was-Bob Miller, still a substitute, and Al Bonniwell, who did not play at all against Yale, who led the attack. Miller dropped 11 points and Bonniwell 10, so it was seen that the Dartmouth attack was vested in these two fellows who did not appear until the game was nearly half over. The results of that game left Dartmouth within an inch of last place with two victories and four defeats.
The summaries: PRINCETON DARTMOUTH GFT G F T Fairman If 6 3 15 Maxwell If 1 0 2 Helm rf 10 2 Bonniwell 0 0 0 Larsen c 3 0 6 Miller 1 6 8 Grebauskas lg.. 5 4 14 Edwards rf. ... 1 0 2 Ceppi 0 0 0 McGrath 0 0 0 Fortune rg 113 Mackey c 10 2 Goss 0 0 0 Totals 16 8 40 Stangle lg 4 0 8 R raszewski rg.. 0 33 Krivitsky 0 0 0 Totals 8 9 25 Referee—Brennan Umpires—Murray and Ken- nedy YALE DARTMOUTH GFT G F T Nikkei If 3 2 8 Edwards If. ... 0 1 1 Saner rf 3 1 7 Maxwell 0 0 0 T)e Angelis.... 2 0 4 Kraszewski rf. . 2 5 9 O'Connell c.... 0 0 0 Miller 0 0 0 Miles lg 1 1 3 Mackey c 33 9 Elliott 3 1 7 Krivitsky lg. . . 2 0 4 Reese rg 2 4 8 Miller 2 1 5 Stangle rg 4 0 8 Totals 14 9 37 . Totals 13 10 36 Referee—Walsh Umpires—Carroll and Young CORNELL DARTMOUTH GFT G F T Ferraro If 5 3 13 Kraszewski If. . 2 1 5 Wilson 0 0 0 Maxwell 0 0 0 Hatkoff rf 4 2 10 Edwards rf.... 204 Wilcox 0 0 0 Bonniwell 4 2 10 Voelker c 2 2 6 Mackey c 10 2 Foote 0 0 0 Goss 0 0 0 Houck lg 1 5 7 Krivitsky lg. . . 0 0 0 Reed rg 1 0 2 Miller 3 5 11 Stangle rg 1 1 3 Totals 13 12 38 Totals 13 9 35 Referee—Walsh Umpires—Kinney and Murray
