DUCK TRACKS
By BERNIE HAMMERBECK
Sports Editor
Spiing term is track and baseball season, but basketball
still fills the air. The fall of the Orange and Black Beaver at
Kansas City caused many a disappointment, while the success
oi the L tah quintet from high in the Rockies in copping the
New York Invitational title
has nt ougnt many a cheer.
Oregon’s well-known and
well liked hoop coach—Hob
by Hobson—was in New
York during the Invitation
al playoffs and came off with
some interesting observa
tions. The Utes were given
scarcely a chance of copping
the Eastern silverware.
Adolph Rupp’s fast charging
Kentucky quintet had all
but been conceded the title
before the tourney got un
derway.
The Utah five, as are most RUBE BECHTOL
of the Rocky mountain and Pacific Coast teams, is just
a bunch of home-grown boys, mostly from within the state
of Utah with a few from elsewhere in the Rockies. The Utes
had finished second in their conference behind Wyoming.
Hobson Praised Peterson and Utes
Coach Nadal Peterson, prior to the final game, admitted
to Hobson that he saw but a slim chance of downing the
tremendously publicized, “All-Americans on the bench” blue
grass boys. Peterson concluded the only Utah chance would
be to slow the game to a walk. And that the Utes did.
Hobson claims it was as beautifully planned a ball game
as he has, seen and that the players did equally well in car
rying out Peterson’s plans. The Utes had heart and downed
Kentucky 49-45 for the far-famed Invitational title.
The Westerners had tremendous support from the fans,
especially in the final game. They were: definitely the under
dogs, and many a rooter had little love for the Kentuckians
ahyway. On hand to aid in the vocal support were the Utah
cheer leaders. At first they had but little help in putting over
school yells, but by halftime with the aid of a few wisecracks,
a PA system, and a fighting ball club the rah-rah boys had
nearly the entire 18,000 fans lustily joining the Utah school
cheers.
Ten Minutes Licked Beavers
The Oregon State Beavers departed from KC with a piece
of hardware bearing the same engraving job as did the Uni
versity of Oregon Webfoots in 1945—third place winners in
the Western NCAA playoffs. And inasmuch as they downed
the Rocky mountain champ, Wyoming, the Gillmen also
picked up the mythical title of Far Western champs.
The Beavers had a rough ten minutes in their Okla
homa game, and that was enough to beat them. The Bevos
in fact choked but twice the whole year—against the hapless
Idaho Vandals in a game that was sure to develop sooner
or later, and to the Sooners of Oklahoma in the contest
that really counted.
^ Alibis aplenty are being offered for the Beaver showing,
most of them not even worth the proverbial grain of salt.
This column originates from the hotbed of Beaver rivalry,
but from here it is doubtful if the Beaver team itself is trying
to get by on alibis. They had their chance and lost it. They
were a great ball team. Chuck Taylor among others who say
the KC playoffs tabbed them the best in the entire NCAA
tourney. They just didn’t have it the night it was needed.
Bechtol Noticed ND Interpretation ''m! ® if
Accurate reports are till not available on the game, but
the siege of traveling' violations during' the first half indicated
that Lew Beck must have been having trouble with his drib
bling. Observers have pointed out all year that both he and
Crandall were using a dribble that ND officials approved but
one that would not pass interpretations of Qtlier parts of the
country. Rube Bechtol, Midwestern official and friend of Grid
Coach Jim Aiken, saw but one OSC game and immediately
came up with that opinion.
Beck, especially, appears to hold the ball with his hand
partly on top and partly behind, as he maneuvers on his
-4Bhange-of-pace dribble. As the ball bounces up from the floor.
Lew’s hand to all appearances meets the ball and follows it
back for just a fraction, as he gives with that tremendously
effective change-of-pace.
Webfoot Thinclads Plagued
By Surly Spring Weather
Runners Move Indoors
To Prepare for OSC
Rainy weather forced a split in
the training program of the track
and field team yesterday. Faced
with a thoroughly dampened track,
Colonel Bill Hayward had his
sprinters work indoors on the ma
ples of McArthur court in lieu of
sprinting on the cinders. Undaunt
ed by the rain, middle distance and
distance men worked out on the
track.
Coach Hayward told his sprint
ers the workout he had lined up
for them and then left them to
carry out the instructions. On the
track he continued to groom the
longer distance runners for the
coming,relays with Oregon State
Saturday.
Most of the sprinters didn’t em
phasize speed in their workouts
around the corridors of the Igloo,
instead just clipped along at a good
pace. The rapid change from the
cinders to the hardwood floor and
from spiked track shoes to flat-foot
ed tennis shoes can often be disas
trous to runners, and Hayward
wasn’t taking any chances on the
legs of his speedy gallopers.
Last year the Beaver sprint
team left the Ducks in the lurch,
copping both the 440 and 880 yard
relays. Headed by Don Humphrey ,
Ross Baton, Bob Laidlaw and
Don Horton, the Orange dash
squad pulled ahead of the Ducks
early in the races and went on to
victory by scant margins. The
same Bevo team is back this
year.
On the track, even though the in
side lane was partially covered with
water in several spots, Hayward
sent his distance men through their
paces in an intensive training pro
gram aimed at stopping the Aggies
cold when the two-mile and four
mile relays are underway.
Half-milers Johnny Joachims,
Stu Norene, Jerry Hunter, A1
White, and George Watkins stressed
speed and accurate laps as they
went to work. The Colonel hasn’t
announced his starting two-mile
team yet. In time trials before
spring vacation, Bill Purcell led all
the half milers to the finish in a
good 2:05 run.
Stu Norene, is rounding into
shape and has recovered from a
leg and foot injury as he was at
the outset of the season.. Norene
was the controversial figure in a
recent Pacific Coast Intercolleg
iate meeting and was granted an
extra year of competition even
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though he transferred from Cor
vallis to Eugene for his studying.
His fast 1:55 half mile before the
war is still One of the better times
posted in Northern Division cir
cles and Hayward lias his hopes
on Stu to duplicate this perform
ance again this year.
Milers were set off in brisk warm
ups of several laps that got down
to the business of ironing out their
pace for the long grind. They ran
a three-quarter mile pace run to
start off the day's program and
finished with a stiff half mile aimed
at perfection of stride and form.
Oregon's team in the four-mile
run was announced by Hayward to
be A1 Pietschman, Dwight Zuloff,
Bob Dreisner and Jon Morton.
Dreisner, a member of last fall’s
cross country team has shown good
speed in recent workouts and will
be a welcome addition to the squad
of milers.
Zuloff and Morton have shown
much improvement since the be
ginning of the season and are ca
pable of clipping off fast times in
the race. Neither men conditioned
themselves by cross country in
the fall but have rapidly rounded
into shape, assuring themselves
of starting spots on the relay
team.
Although hampered by a pulled
tendon sustained while in the army,
A1 Pietschman is scheduled to
round out the milers in their team
appearance Saturday. Colonel Hay
ward's skill with bandages has en
abled Pietschman to gain a berth on
the squad.
BICYCLES
Get out and enjoy
yourself this Spring
and Summer
Just arrived—Allotment
of New Bicycles
Ladies’ and Men’s Models
Campus Cyclery
796 E. 11th Ph. 4789
Next Sunday
Is Easter
Are You Ready?
How About Your Hair?
EUGENE BARBER
LORD JEFF
Sweaters
I Are in
The
UNIVERSITY
SPORT SHOP
NEXT TO THE SIDE
PETE
THE COP
Says:
GET YOUR
CASHMERE SWEATER
at
MORRISON-HENNING
They are fine imports in:
Yellow, Navy, Brown, Green,
Natural, and that hard to
get color black.
MORRISON & HENNING
Store for Men
McDonald Theater Bldg.