Dartmouth's basketball team ended the season with a rush, and had the Big Green been able to show even part of the stuff season, the league result would have been a different story.
Dartmouth had passed through a month of play without winning a game, and then suddenly came the transition which saw a rejuvenated team, led by a new set of forwards, plow through all opposition save one game.
The Harvard game started the Green on the winning path, and that night the Crimson was forced to bow by a 30-17 margin. A 1 JBonniwell, who was the sensation of the ensuing month's play, was started at forward with Bob Miller, and these two players put Dartmouth out in a safe lead early in the game so that there was no question of the ultimate victor. This game was followed by an easy win over the Army, and then the serious business of league games came around again.
Despite the fact that Dartmouth was out of the league race at this time, the Columbia contest held its thrills and a crowd packed the gymnasium for the contest. And what a game it was! Columbia had a veteran five, with the great Owen McDowell at center and Len Hartman at guard, and it was expected that the Green would have a hard battle.
But in the first minute of play Mackey, "Miller, Kraszewski, Stangle and Bonniwell threw baskets. Imagine that in a league game! The shots came thick and fast, and the crowd of 2000 was whipped into a pandemonium. Dartmouth continued to throw baskets after the original five had each sunk one, and the score mounted up to 15-0 before a sorely harrassed Columbia team took time out. You simply had to have a breathing spell somewhere, and that time out helped the crowd as much as the players.
I don't think that I have ever seen a Dartmouth basketball team click as Dartmouth did during those hectic first five minutes.
That lead saved the day, for thereafter the two teams settled down to normal playing and the final score was 45-32, which almost represented the margin of victory as of those first five minutes. Although Dartmouth had a 26-14 lead at half time, this was eaten into by Hartman who threw five baskets in the second session.
The feelings of those who saw the game were those of chagrin that the Big Green could not have shown this punch earlier in the season. The memories of the loss at Cornell and the one-point defeat by Yale were still pretty close.
Pennsylvania was the next on the docket, and again Dartmouth came through with flying colors in a 29-19 victory over a team that was adjudged one of the strongest in the league at the start of the season and which ultimately put Princeton out of the championship.
Again the slim sophomore A 1 Bonniwell was the star of the game, and his ten points marked the high water-mark of Dartmouth scoring. The entire set of Pennsylvania forwards were held scoreless from the floor by Stangle and Kraszewski, and although the game in its entirety was not that it displayed toward the end of the impressive, at no time did Dartmouth have to extend itself to win.
The following week the Green went on its last trip of the year and dropped the first game to Princeton, 39-35, after giving a strong exhibition against the Tigers who were battling for the title. It was an orgy of fouls, and the officials called 30 penalties before the game was over, giving rise to much criticism from men of both teams. The scoring punch was vested in Seibert and Fairman, the two Princeton forwards accounting for 26 points between them.
No one was prepared for the story of the final game as it came across the wires, but the fact is that Dartmouth flattened Columbia with a 53-26 score. In this tremendous pasting of the Lions, who were without McDowell, Bonniwell hung up 16 points, while Stangle and Kraszewski caged ten apiece. Considering that Dartmouth led at half time by only 19-18, the second half saw the utter collapse of the Lions' defense.
The season is over, but before we close the basketball book for the year, I should like to pay tribute to one of the grandest campaigners Dartmouth has seen on the court, and that gentleman is Harold Mackey at center. Mackey is the only one of the first-string players to graduate, and his three years of colorful basketball have saved many a game. Although not ranking high in the scoring column, Mackey has met the best centers of the league during his tenure, and has held these centers either scoreless or to a minimum of baskets.
The coaches and writers pick all—teams from the averages, and the averages show only baskets thrown, so Mackey does not rate very high; but in defensive play and worth to a team, Mackey is more valuable than a dozen other centers.
The summaries: DARTMOUTH COLUMBIA CT F T G F T Miller If 3 S 0 . 0 0 0 . 2 0 4 . 4 7 10 Bonniwell rf. . . 7 2 16 Tomb rf . 0 0 0 Krivitsky. . . . 0 0 0 McDowell c.. . 1 0 2 . 2 () 4 . 1 (> ? . 0 0 0 3 3 . 1 1 3 . 0 0 0 Hubbell . 0 0 0 Hartman rg.. . 6 2 14 Kraszewski rg. . 4 1 9 Steigman.. . . 1 1 32 Totals . 19 7 45 Referee—Degnan Umpires—Kinney and Tobey DARTMOUTH PENNSYLVANIA G F T G F T Miller If „ o 1 1 O'Donnell If. . 0 1 1 Edwards . 0 0 0 Brown . 0 1 1 Bonniwell rf. . . 4 2 10 Klempner rf. . 0 0 0 Croninger 0 0 MacDonald.. . 0 0 0 Mackey c. . . . . 1 1 3 Kosloff . 0 0 0 Miller . 0 0 0 Freeman c.. . . 2 2 0 . 4 1 0 . 0 0 0 Krivitsky . 0 0 0 Kellett . 0 0 0 Kraszewski rg . 3 0 6 Hashagen rg. . 4 3 11 19 Totals 5 29 Referee—Norton Umpires—Young and Murray
PRINCETON DARTMOUTH G F T G F T S 11 Miller If . 1 4 6 S 1 s . 0 0 0 8 Helm 0 0 0 Bonniwell rf. . 3 2 2 1 s 0 • 0 . 5 1 Grebauskas rg. 2 2 6 Prince .. 0 0 0 Willett 0 0 0 Kraszewski lg . 1 1 3 0 0 14 11 39 .. 2 () 4 Hubbell .. 0 1 1 Totals.. . . .13 9 35 Referee—Kinney Umpires—Carroll and Bren- nan DARTMOUTH COLUMBIA G F T G F T 1 7 ? 9 6 . 0 S Bonniwell rf. . 7 2 16 Maroon c. . . . 0 0 0 Maxwell 0 1 1 Hartman lg.. .. 6 2 14 1 f> 9 .. 2 3 7 Prince 0 0 0 Kraszewski lg. 5 0 10 Totals. . . . .. X 10 26 Stangle rg 5 0 10 Totals ?,4 4 52 Ref eree—Ki nney Umpires—Tobey and Ken- nedy