BASKETBALL
Coach Osborne Cowles has come home from the wars and the basketball team is now firmly in his capable hands. In our last column, this department commented happily upon the auspicious opening of the league season against Pennsylvania, when Dartmouth started out in quest of its eighth consecutive title. This league winning streak proved to be just one game long. In the only other titular encounter to date, Dartmouth absorbed a thorough trouncing from Columbia to the tune of 51-33, which outcome, whatever else it might have been, was definitely not like the old days. But let us bring the story up to date.
On December 23, Dartmouth dropped a close encounter to Yale in the Boston Garden by the score of 45-42. This was the first time since 1938 that the Big Green had been taken by Yale in basketball and during this period the Elis had absorbed the impressive string of 12 consecutive losses to Dartmouth (yes, two every year for six years). Paced by their All-American end, Paul Walker, Yale (who for "some whimsical reason is not in the league for the duration) has a good basketball team this year. Dartmouth was kept in the game only by the phenomenal shooting of Ed Leede, freshman center, who racked up the amazing total of 24 points. This is only slightly under the league scoring record of 29 made by the great Gus Broberg, who was an interested spectator at this encounter in his uniform as a naval aviator. Leede was guarded by Yale's Walker, who committed the error of allowing him (Leede) to shoot at will from about the edge of the foul line. This distance is apparently just Leede's dish and he almost pulled the game out of the fire single handed.
The next Saturday night, Dartmouth made its initial appearance this year at Madison Square Garden, where they took on the strong St. John's five and were soundly beaten for their pains. St. John's was the winner of the New York Invitation Tournament last year and was beaten only by Utah (the conqueror of Dartmouth in the finals of the NCAA tournament). What is more to the point, St. John's had practically the same team with which they burned up the fast New York circuit last winter, whereas not one of Dartmouth's former galaxy of talented operatives was within shouting distance. The outcome was not unexpected and the Redmen came out on the long end of a 53-38 score. Ed Leede again provided the major bright spot for Dartmouth, with a sensational 22 points. The rest of the team managed to score only 16 points between them, with Falkin scoring five, DiStefani and Goodwin four each, and Braatz three.
At this point in the narrative, we must reluctantly conclude our perfervid affairede coeur with Darrell (Smiley) Braatz, who initially gave rare promise of brightening up the corners of the basketball court in the same colorful manner as he had the gridiron. Apparently regarding the matter of scholastic endeavor with the same insouciance as he formerly displayed for the opposition on the football field, Braatz has been strongly advised to devote his talents to the classroom for the balance of the basketball season. To put it vulgarly, he is on probation, or the Marine equivalent thereof. For the next game with Camp Endicott, Coach Cowles was accordingly, forced to do some shifting of the not unlimited talent currently at his disposal.
These maneuvers bore initial fruit in the Endicott game, which the Green took by the tidy margin of 51-40. Big Bob Harvey, football tackle, made his varsity basketball bow at center, where his six feet four inches and 220 pounds were of no slight advantage to the local cause. In addition to playing a good floor game, Harvey scored 11 points, which gave him second scoring honors for Dartmouth to the continued brilliance of Ed Leede, who came through with 21 points. The Indians showed considerable poise and teamwork in this encounter, which was a gratifying reflection of Coach Cowles' first full week at directing the team.
On January 6, Dartmouth trotted on the minuscule Coluiqbia basketball floor with high hopes of winning their second league encounter. They trotted off some 40 minutes later on the short end of a 51-33 score, as announced above. Taking a commanding lead of 27-13 at the half, during which time the Dartmouth team was unable to get going in any sustained fashion, the Lions were never headed. The Green managed to score 20 points in the second half, only to have Columbia score 24, so the final result was never in any serious doubt. The reliable Ed Leede, held for the first time in several games to less than 20 points, still topped the Dartmouth scoring with 16 points. DiStefani managed to penetrate the nets for four baskets and eight points and was trailed by the other members of the starting team with mimimum individual contributions to the common welfare. Columbia has always been a hard nut to crack on its own tiny floor. The return engagement in Hanover between the two teams may see a different outcome.
The familiar pattern of Dartmouth defeat in spite of the heroic individual efforts of Ed Leede was continued against Brown on January 13. This time the score was 58-52 in favor of Brown, with Leede personally contributing 26 points. The game started out as a purely solo effort of Leede versus Brown, with the youthful Dartmouth sharpshooter scoring the first 14 points for Dartmouth all by himself. The Green ran up a comfortable lead midway in the first half, only to have it whittled down at half-time to a narrow 26-25 margin. This was not quite enough to hold the rampaging Bruin quintet, which came through to score 33 points in the second half, while Dartmouth was able to amass only 26.
This pattern was partially reversed the following Tuesday night against Middlebury, when Leede not only scored an impressive covey of points but Dartmouth also won the game by the comfortable score of 58-45. On this occasion, Leede almost rang the bell, trotting off the floor with 28 points to his credit. The bell which did not quite toll for him was the record of the great Gus Broberg of 29 points against Pennsylvania on the local floor. This was the highest total any Dartmouth basketball player ever scored in Hanover. With his 28 points, however, Ed Leede was doing pretty well for a freshman. For those of you who are too busy with more important matters to recapitulate the boy's total over the last half dozen games, here it is: Yale 24, St. John's 22, Camp Endicott 21, Columbia 16, Brown 26, and Middlebury 28. Whether or not he returns after the war to complete a career already so brilliantly begun, Ed Leede will still rank with the Dartmouth greats in basketball history—with Gus Broberg, George Munroe, Stub Pearson, Bob Myers, and Aud Brindley, to name only a few of the high scorers in recent years. That is pretty fast company for a freshman.
MEMBERS OF THE BIG GREEN HOCKEY SQUAD which up to January 20 had run Dartmouth's phenomenal four-year hockey streak to 44 contests without defeat. Left to right, front row: Terry Van Ingen, Bob Roberts, Al McAllister, Charlie Holt, Ralph Warburton, Bruce Cunliffe, Pete Betts, Manny Benero; back' row: Mac Macartney, Sol Hager, Mac McCaleb, Paul McGuinnis, Hank Torpey, Coach "Hafey" Arthur Gene DeFelice, Woody Deyou, Sherm Gleason, Ed McLaughlin.
SCORING SENSATION of the Dartmouth basketball team this winter is Ed Leede '48, civilian freshman from Flushing, N. Y., who has bettered 20 points in each of a long string of games.
