THE MICHIGAN DAILY Cagers Play Wyoming in Last Non-Conference Game Second Day of Wrestling Tourney Clears Picture Skillman Decisions Gittins in See-Saw Match; Johnston, Freeman To Appear in Return Bout Cowboy Tilt Precedes Opener With Ohio State Wolverines Hope To Gain Experience for Conference by Meeting Tall Wyoming Squad By MARY LU HEATH When Michigan's basketball squad tangles with the University of Wyoming Saturday night in the Field House, it will mark the last non- Conference game for the Wolverines before the Big Ten opener with Ohio State Dec. 30. It is particularly fortunate that Michigan's cagers will be meeting the Wyoming quintet, for this game will give them a chance to gain some experience against a tall squad, which will come in handy in Big Ten competition. Coach Bennie Ooster- By STAN SAUERHAFT As the second day of the intra- squad wrestling tournament came to a close, the semblance of a picture of the probable starters began to take form. Because of a mild upset yesterday when Fred Booth decisioned Jim Zumberge, 10-4, the complexion of the 145-pound division has changed. Zumberge had previously defeated George Darrow, who was then con- sidered the probable leader in this bracket. In the featured match of the day, Newton Skillman won a decision over Bob Gittins by the narrow margin of 9-7 This was a see-saw engagement in which the lead changed hands five times until Skillman decided it by blanket ;riding Gittins for the majority of the final period, after he had come from behind to tie the score. Johnston in Close One In what may be termed the second Pucksters Will Pla yNine Tilts Sextet Faces Vickers In First Fray of Year The Wolverine hockey team will swing into action January 6 when thesextet opens the 1945 season fac- ing the Vickers Hockey Club of De- troit. This is the twenty-fourth year of hockey competition for the Univer- sity of Michigan puck squad, and the schedule has nine games of which Minnesota is the only collegiate team. Another oddity that concerns the schedule, is that allthe games will be played at home except when the Wolverines travel to Minneapolis to meet Minnesota. The opening tilt is Jan. 6 against Vickers. Jan. 13 the Wolverines op- pose Minnesota at Minneapolis; Jan. 20, London Athletic Club; Jan. 27, Brantford Athletic Club; Feb. 3, Min- nesota plays a return engagement here; Feb. 10, Waterloo Athletic Club; March 3 Point Edward; March 10, Owen Sound Junior Team; and March 17, London R.C.A.F. All the squads are Canadian ex- cept for the Gophers, and every match will be played on Saturday and start at 8 p. m. Many of the teams will not be new to the Maize and Blue pucksters. Last season the Wolver- ines faced Vickers, London A. C., Brantford, and it was the first time since 1923 that the Michigan ice team did not oppose Minnesota. The Anal standings of the 1943-44 seasui4 for the Wolverines was five wins against three defeats. FLOWERS... are your answer! . For the perfect Christmas gift buy FLOWERS! There is noth- A ing like a POTTED PLANT or CUT FLOWERS to liven up the house .. and for a more personal gift, why not a COR- SAGE? CHELSEA i FLOWER .SHOP 203 East Liberty featured match of the day, as it was equally as important in the 128- pound division as was the Skillman- Gittins meeting in the 136-pound bracket, Bob Johnston eked out a 4-3 decisionbover Dick Freeman in a match that might have been decided either way. In fact, the engagement was so close that Coach Wallv Weber stated that he would pit the same two grapplers against each other when the wrestling team resumes training after the Christmas vaca- tion. Stuart Snyder, a 155-pounder, won his second decision in as many days by triumphing over Gene Ross. This bout started at a terrifically fast pace, with a touch of drama being added to the proceedings when Sny- der received a cut over his right eye which continued bleeding throughout the remainder of the match. Snyder Wins The score was very close going into the third period when Snyder got a good hold on Ross and succeeded in pinning him after one minute and 31 seconds of the final period had elapsed. Snyder, by winning this match, elevated himself to the front ranks of the 155-pound contestants. The only other match of the day produced a victory for Bob Spiegel over Hugh Stancliffe, 7-0, in the 175- pound class. Spiegel now appears as the chief threat to Hank Mantho in this division. Mantho has not been able to participate in this tourna- ment because of a wrenched back. I - Texas Cotton Bowl Expects. Record Crowd DALLAS, Dec. 20-(IP)-Don't be surprised, say Cotton Bowl officials, if the big stadium is jammed to the last row Jan. 1 when Texas Christian and Oklahoma A. and M. hook up in a wide-open battle. It's because of the prospective of- fensive struggle that tickets to the ninth annual Bowl game are going like ice cream cones at a county poli- tical rally. P. C. Cobb, director of ticket sales, said today there had been the largest advance reservation for any year ex- cept 1941 when Texas A. and M. met Fordham. Around 25,000 tickets have been disposed of. They're now sell- ing between the five-yard and goal lines. Cobb would not forecast a sell-out of 46,500 but other bowl officials thought prospects were good for the stadium to be filled as it was in 1941. Time For a Change? Michigan has not won a Western Conference basketball championship since the season of 1928-29. That year the Wolverines racked up 14 victories against two defeats while scoring 475 points to the opposition's 333. Only one of the setbacks was suffered in Big Ten competition. The cagers also came out on top of the heap in 1926-27, this time with a 14 and three record, out-scoring their opponents 571 to 425. Cardinals Vote Dividend ST. LOUIS, Dec. 20.-(/P)-- The Board of Directors of the world champion St. Louis Cardinals voted a $3 dividend to the club's 130 stock- holders today. PACKERS GAIN-Left halfback Irv Comp (arrow) plows through the scattered New York Giants' line to gain for the Green Bay Packers during the first quarter of the game in the Polo Grounds at New York. The Packers won 14 to 7. Team Balanceo Aid Michigan Swimmers In '45 Quest for Conference,National Honors Freesty lers Stand Out in Swim Gala Last Saturday's Swim Gala showed for a certainty the makeup and+ material of the 1945 Wolverine swim-J ming squad, which is out after Con-] ference and National honors this year, according to Coach Matt Mann. The team appeared to be well- balanced, boasting surplus power in several departments, and showing pctentialities good in the others. The freestylers looked especially good in the sprints, relays, and dis- tance events. Captain Mert Church and Chuck Fries in particular, showed up well for their pre-seasonrtraining, and Coach Mann looks forward to' great things for this duo in the forth- coming, meets. Duane Drake and Charlie Higgins also have improved in the past weeks, and may prove to be large factors in Michigan's plans for 1945. Kessler Shines In the 220-yard freestyle, Jack Zimmerman placed third to Bill Ko- gan and Matt Mann III, to put a pleased smile on Coach Mann's face. Zimmerman has been working hard this year, and the arduous practice is beginning to pay dividends. In the breaststroke events, Heini Kessler. sophomore ace, reigns su- preme. Kessler churned through the water to win the 100-yard breast- stroke in the comparatively fast time Dies in Detroit Charles Henry (Chuck) Widman, Michigan halfback who inspired Louir Elbel to write the "Victors" during the 1$96 ootoau season, died Tuesday night in a Detroit hospital after an illness of several weeks. Widman, 65-year-old retired vice- president of the Murray Corporation of America, made the 85-yard run against the University of Chicago which gave Michigan the Thanksgiv- ing Day game against the Chicago- ans and lifted the spirits of Elbel, depressed by the five point margin by which the Wolverines trailed. The '98 team, one of the best Michigan aggregations ever assem- bled, according to Fielding H. Yost, was losing, 11-6, with three minutes left to play when Widman took the ball for his 85-yard jaunt up the field. The final score was 12-11, and the Wolverines went on to clinch the Conference championship. of :65.8. His times have been steadily improving, and he may come close to a new record before the season is over, according to Mann. In the backstroke department Gor- don Pulford and Bob Munson are the Maize and Blue's main hopes. They placed second and fourth respectively in Saturday night's competition, but showed good form and potential win- ning ability, while losing. Coach Mann is planning a lot of work for these two fellows, and holds high hopes of backstroke points in the future meets. Divers Improve Bill Gomez and Carl Agriesti, Mich- igan's two divers, although not plac- ing in their event, got off some fine dives to give an indication of their possibilities. Fancy diving is one of the most demanding competitive events as far as perfection is con- cerned, and entails long hours of practice. These boys, says Mann, have the necessary natural ability, and their scheduled training program will go a long way toward giving them the consistent perfection need- ed. Using the Swim Gala as a basis, the Michigan mermen are in good shape, and the coaching staff feels quite sure that championships in swimming will once more return to Ann Arbor. BUY WAR BONDS baan's chief worry this season has been the lack of height among the cagers, since any starting combina- tion he could put on the floor would not average more than six feet. Be- cause of the 6 ft., 4 in. average of the Cowboy team, this game will provide an excellent opportunity for Michigan to take stock of its forth- coming Conference hopes. Three Stand Out. Standouts for the Cowboys so far this season have been center George Nostrand, 6 ft:, 9 in. transfer to Wy- oming from High Point (N. C.) Col- lege, and forwards Bob Porter and George Eliopulus. Porter, another transfer from High Point, measures a casual 6 ft., 4 in. in height. He is a very fast man and an exceptionally good shot. Elio- pulus, a 17-year-old freshman, is 6 ft., 2 in. tall, a fine shot, and a scrap- py defense man. The Wyoming team, which includes seven freshmen and five sophomores, boasts of no returning veterans from the squad which won the national championship in a thrilling overtime- contest with St. John's in Madison Square Garden two years ago, and claims only one returning letterman from the 1942 team. He is Leon (Stretch) Brown, 6 ft., 4 in. guard. The scarcity of veterans was caused by the discontinuation of Wyoming's basketball schedule last year. Oosterbaan Experiments Coa-gh Oosterbaan has been experi- menting with combinations to com- bat the tremendous height advantage of the Wyoming squad. One radical change in play which the Wolverine coach might initiate is the fast break, which might be able to give the small but swift Michigan players an advan- tage. This would be a great change from the customary form of attack, the slow, methodical, set play style of basketball, which Michigan has used during past seasons. Red Wings To Face Rangers DETROIT, Dec. 20-(P)-The De- troit Red Wings, alone in second place in the National Hockey League after an even break in three games since last Sunday, continue their busy Christmas week schedule here Thursday by meeting the New York Rangers. Since slapping the Rangers 10-3 here six weeks ago, the Wings have made three appearances against the New Yorkers-all in the East--and had considerable difficulty coming out of the series with a win, a tie and a defeat. After Thursday's tilt, the Wings tackle third place Toronto twice straight-at Toronto Saturday and. here Christmas night. ULwm~ I-'t I't*" II! i I, E' 0n Sale.... _ _ _ - t II.- I d i jy'ip'c' Y f KO d .'{ ( '$4" ": " A " ! ' M_ .. 4I Y -=- I On Campus, at the Bookstores, Union, and the League. /2o> G 'G 1-0 nil mrtore Choose a BOOK from Se AIrO INCU "\Ak P evtpnrl-Hrdicb;;v CGretincis . . II lil 'I!f ' ,r , ;, ': i !IIII 3 t 0 .-- a~ a~Z- f~ a ama M Nm M t- okAM a k f I-kOtA a t"AU 11 11 liill III I