WN"
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
PAGE THREE
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Cagers Battle W
Wolverines Seek Victory
Over Favored Broncos
estern Michigan in New
,... - ' s.....,.
Brotwos' Veteran Coach
TAKING IT EASY
By ED ZALENSKI
Daily Sports Editor
(ear's Day Game
A U Swimming Meet
To Be Held Here Jan. 8
By BILL MULLENDORE
In the final tuneup before the
opening of Western Conference com-
petition the Michigan cagers are
scheduled to trek to Kalamazoo for
a return match with Coach Buck
Read's rough-riding Broncos of Wes-
tern Michigan on New Year's Day.
The Wolverines will be seeking re-
venge for a 48-38 shellacking at the
hands of Western two weeks ago
which snapped the Maize and Blue's
winning streak at three games and
toppled them from the ranks of the
nation's undefeated teams. The high-
flying Broncos, who hold victories
over.' such powerhouses as Notre
Dame and Northwestern and boast a
season's record of five wins in six
starts, are after their sixth consecu-
tive triumph and continued recogni-
tion as one of the country's top-
f light <teams.
Wolverines Work Hard
Although Western will enter the
game as an overwhelming favorite, it
has been apparent from the Wolver-
ine practice drills this week that the
Michigan.squad is not going just for
the ride. Coach Oosterbaan has
Worked his charges very hard, and a
Michigan defeat will not be the result
of .lack of preparation. Yesterday's
#rkout featured many tough de-
fensive and offensive drills, followed
by a series of lively scrimmages. The
coaching staff has worked up some
new tactics to throw at the Broncos
and may be able to spring a surprise.
The only sour note was the absence
due to illness of starting forward
Wayne Thompson from the scrim-
mage. If he does not recover in time
for the game, Michigan's chances of
vict'ory. ; Will Suffer a seiis blow;.,
tornking"worked at Thompson's po-
~sition in yesterday's scrimmage.
Western Heavy Favorite
On the face., of the recoids it is
hard to foresee anything but another
defeat for the Wolverines in spite of
theitdetermination to score an up-
set. In the previous encounter .be-
Vween tie two clubs Western enjoyed
a -clean-ciht superiority both on of-
fense and defense. Their fast break
ing, 'race horse style of' play. consis-
tently out-maneuvered the- Michigan
defense for easy lay-up shots, while
.thieir out-court shooting was very
accurate .especially when 'the going
became a little rough.
Michigan-Must Improve
Defensiyely,.; the Broncos showed
great, aptitude in breaking up Michi-
gan's controlled-ball offense. Their
tactics of playing the ball and keep-
ing the opposition from getting set
proved very effective. Michigan did
not get many shots from favorable
p ositions.
In .addition to their obvious me-.
chanical superiority the Western ca-
gers displayed fine team spirit which
ECLATSFIE
. tI" CTOR
enabled them to turn on the heat
whenever their lead was threatened.
They were in complete control
throughout most of the contest.
If Oosterbaan can devise a way for
his men to break up the powerful
Bronco attack and score a few more
points themselves, Western will have
an interesting evening. Michigan
mnust also show some improvement
in their backboard play, a depart-
ment in which they were rather weak
two weeks ago. The 'Broncos domi-
nated both backboards in that game
and profited by it to a large degree.
Lineup To Be the Same
Oosterbaan will probably stick to
his lineup of Dave Strack and Wayne
Thompson at forwards, Bill Seymour
at center, and Don Lund and Dick
Shrider at the guard positions. In
the event that 'Thompson is not in
shape for the game King will prob-
ably take his place."
Buck, Read is also expected to
carry on with the five boys who have
opened the preceding contests. These
include forwards Rolla Anderson and
Dick Bowman, center Glen Rodney,
and guards Marve Byisma and Rus-
sel Mason. Since the success of the
racehorse attack depends upon hav-
ing fresh men in the game at all
times, it is certain that at least
twelve players will see action. In
other games it has been the substi-
tutes who have provided the main
scoring punch.
The ngame promises to be a well-
played, hotly contested affair since
both teams have a lot at stake. A
Michigan victory would greatly in-
crease their prestige while a Western
triumph would insure their contin-
ued ranking as one of the nation's
best. The Broncops are heavily fav-
ored,. but an upset.is definitely a
possibility.
The, Michigan travelling squad will
leave Ann Arbor "at 9:30 Saturday
morning in:order to work out before
the game. -The opening- tipoff is
scheduled for 7:30._
Rep lace men t of
National .Sport
NEW YORK, Dec. 30&-GP)-Branch
Rickey predicted today that if base-
ball doesn't show a, -little hustle it
may be replaced by professional foot-
ball as the national pastime in the
next decade or so.
a
T w
BUCK READ
... will be leading his team into
his 400th game as hea4 basketball
coach at Western Michigan. This
year's squad is 'one of the finest
ever turned out by the Silver F ox
in his colorful regime at Western.
Bob Derleth's
Return Helps
Hockey Team
Hockey practice yesterday was
highlighted by two events, the return
of Captain Bob Derleth and changes
in the forward line.
Changes in the front line and Der-
leth's return were one and the same
thing since Coach Eddie Lowrey
switched Derleth from the .back line
to a wing spot Before h. was in-
jured De'liti was Playing defense
but in the' first. game:the' back line
made such a good showing that Low-
rey decided he would use Derleth's
skill in'the front line.
Playing with Derleth in one for-
ward line were John Jenswold and
Ted Greer.: Jenswold is'on the Mich-
igan team for °te first time andmas
yet has': seen no, action in a game,
but Lowrey said last night that he
was thinking of -using him on Janu-
ary 8.- Greer was responsible for the
only Maize -and. Blue score in the con-
test against London and will.prob-
ably start at center -against Sarnia.
Another line used -yesterday was
Gordie Anderson, Vince Abbey and
Jack -Athens. -Anderson played at
center for the first time, as prior to
this he has been a regular wing.
A Synonym for Progress... .
WEATHER-BEATEN, kindly Buck Reed has become an institution at!
Kalamazoo's Western Michigan in the 20 years of his "marriage" to
the basketball coaching post. But unlike other men married to a job and
content to drift serenely as long as they turn out winning teams, Reed has
kept his brand of basketball in step with progress in other fields of sports.
When his Broncos invaded the Field House Dec. 18 and put his
famous "fast break" on exhibition, we had our first opportunity to see
the real McCoy in action. And it was our first meeting with this famous
man of basketball who is credited with working out the fast break as a
definite system.
It was shortly after the Broncos had whipped the Wolverines, 48-38,
that we wandered into the visitors' locker room and asked the trainer if
"Mr. Reed was around." He pointed to the kindly, grey-haired man stand-
ing in the corner with one foot on a bench. To us Mr. Reed looked more
like a successful father and business man than a coach.
WHAT WAS YOUR impression of the game tonight, the two teams
andtheeffectiveness of the fastbreak?, we asked him. Buck smiled
pleasantly and answered each question frankly.
"The game (perhaps, you may recall the last basketball game played
by the Wolverines before the Christmas holiday) was a lot rougher than I
had expected. And I mean rough physically as well as lacking in smooth-
ness. I blamed the extremely cold air of your Field House (SOMEONE,
TAKE NOTE!) for this.
"My boys weren't passing the ball as well as they had in practice
all week, nor were they breaking down the floor as quickly and smoothly
as I expected. There was much more bruising body contact than nec-
essary, mostly due to the cold air which was bound to affect my boys
who are used to warmer playing conditions."
NATURALLY, we were really interested in hearing Reed's opinion of
Michigan's style of play, what he thought of the material Coach Bennie
Oosterbaan had to work with and how adapted our players were to his style
of play. His answers were both revealing and surprising!
,Michigan basketball, a la 1943-44 style, was of the "fast break"
variety. "There were many occasions when the Michigan players
broke with-such speed that they got away from my boys who are used
to racehorse tactics," Reed said. That is a surprising fact, especially in
view of.Wolverine quintets in past years.
One- question: was burning a hole through our teeth so we fired it at
the genial- veteran. "Do you think, from your observations of Michigan
,players tonight, that we have the material for a fast break style of play?"
Reed was definite and certain. "Of course. Your men appeared
to be fast and rangy and in good condition. My boys live the fast break,
yet the Michigan men kept pace all the way." That's proof enough for
us, Mr. Reed!
A ND NOW WE come up to Saturday's return game at Kalamazoo with the
same Broncos. "What should we expect from'your Broncos on their own
court that we didn't see here?" Reed laughed at this question. "Naturally,
my boys should be smoother and more coordinated on their home court in
a warmer gymnasium. But I won't say that it should double our margin
of victory. In fact, I won't even say that we'll win, although we should."
Mr. Reed, we thought, you should have been a Republican.
By JIM LEWY
The University of Michigan swim-
ming pool has been kept quite busy
these days in preparation for the
Michigan AAU swimming champion-
ships which will be held here on Jan.
8.
Since the entries for this event
close on Jan. 3, Coach Matt Mann
and his assistants have been under
the constant pressure of a pre-meet
atmosphere, in the very recent past.
Entries for the contest have been
pouring in from all over the state,
and the day of the meet will probably
bring many prospective champions
to Ann Arbor.
Male Events Feature Meet
Features for men will highlight the
event with the women taking part in
one 50-yard freestyle handicap race
and girls under 15 years of age par-
ticipating in another freestyle en-
counter of 25 yards. The male can-
didates will be entered in a variety of
events of which there are two free-
style runs, one of 50 yards and one
of 440 yards. Following these is a
100 yard breaststroke race and a 100
yard backstroke event.
Special Event on Program
Diving competition will feature use
of both the high and the low boards.
There will be six dives from either
board by each entrant. Rounding
out the meet is a 200 yard medley
relay for men with the members of
each team swimning a freestyle,
breast or side, and backstroke heat.
The last of the championship events
will be a 25 yard race for boys of 15
years of age or under.
A special event will take place
after the completion of the above
races. This willtbe a200 yard relay
swim for Navy teams. The competi-
tion for this event should be particu-
larly high for obvious reasons.
Medals will be awarded for each
race. All contestants must be mem-
bers of the Michigan AAU for the
meet which starts at 8:00 p.m.
Smeja East Starter
Rudy Smeja of Michigan was nam-
ed by Coaches Andy Kerr and Dr.
George Hauser of the East team as a
member of the probable starting line-
up for the annual East-West game
Jan. 1.
Smeja, an end, played stellar foot-
ball for the Wolverines during the
past two seasons, and drew much
acclaim for his steady performance.
Keller Becomes Ensign
WASHINGTON, Dec. 30.-(A)-
Charlie Keller, New York Yankee
leftfielder, became an Ensign in U.S.
Maritime Service today and will be
assigned to the St. Petersburg, Fla.,
Training Station as a physical fit-
ness officer.
BUY WAR BONDS- INVEST IN VICTORY
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one or two days. (In-
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*1
SR E C O RD
by
DAVI D HALL
9 This is the complete
October 1943 edition, in-
cluding all supplements.
1063 pages
LOST and FOUND
LOST-Lady's wrist watch, yellow
gold, round face, black cord brace-
let. Lost Saturday before Christ-
mas.- Phone 6801.
LOST--Black billfold with the name
"Ruth" on it. Contains about $120.
Reward,. Phone 21854.
MISCELLANEOUS
MIMEOGRAPHING: thesis binding.
Brumfield and Brumfield, 308 8
State.
ALTERATIONS on ladies' garments.
Phone 226'78. Alta. Graves, 402 Ob-
- servatory Street, opposite Stock-
well.
11
THE LIGHT
IN THE FRUIT CELLAR
Someone, perhaps Mrs. Jones, went down
to get a jar of victory garden tomatoes last
evening and forgot to turn off the light. It
wasn't discovered until next morning-
washday, luckily-when Mrs. Jones
started working in the basement.
Ordinarily a small light left burning all
night wouldn't be too important. But today
ANY waste of electricity is serious be-
cause it wastes coal-as well as transpor-
tation, manpower, and other critical re-
sources. That is why the Government re-
quests you to conserve electric power-
voluntarily-in home and store and office.
Even though electricity is not rationed
and there is no shortage in this area, con-
serve whenever you can, as much as you
can. The Detroit Edison Company.
Price:
$4.95
Sing it the fek ear
* Our own monthly rec-
ord review is also written
by David Hall. If you are
not already on our mail-
ing list, a phone call or
post-card will assure you
of your copy.
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