Omaha daily bee., 1903-01-11
BASKET BALL is NOW SAFER
New Rules Eliminates Most Of the Danger
from the Game.
HOW THE PLAYERS WERE MADE cRlPPtEs
wild Dashes After wandering Balls
Lcd Many an Ambitious Youth
Into n smash Against
the wall.

With the opening OF the basket ball sea-
pon has commenced a chorus Of praise for
the alteration Of one rule. The changes
made by the national association were but
few, yet this one alone promises to add
years to the continuance Of basket ball as
the leading winter sport. and further than
that II actually assures its indefinite life as
a leading game.
The yast influence which the changing OF
a single rule can WELD results from the
fact that It eradicates from the game its
one greatest weakness, rough play. Yet
in doing so 1t does not deprive The sport
Of any Of its virility or strenuousness 1t
simply removes the possibility Of serious
injury which was certainly existent as the
game was formerly played. Competition
is not to be checked nor softened in the
least thereby.
The alteration is simply one that says
that a ball out OF bounds goes on It's re-,
turn to the opponents of the man who got
It first and brought II in. Before an out-of-
bounds ball has gone to the man who
touches It first after 1t is outside. This
has led to bruising. reckless dashes for
the ball on all occasions by men from each
opposing side, and, as the objective point
is single, the result is always a fierce
collision. But now that a man must hand
the ball over to an opponent as soon as
he gets It in. he isn't going to fight very
hard for It.
During the few years that basket ball
has been popular many players have been
seriously hurt at It, and some permanently.
Many a gridiron athlete has shuddered to
watch the players smashing headlong into
gymnasium walls in a race for the ball
that was out Of bounds. Every injury is
credited to such an occasion, as there is
small chance of being hurt while the ball
is in play within the lines.
The fierce. competition for a ball outside
Is due to the fact that the possession Of
such a ball gives a throw from the point
where Il crossed the line. Consider now
the fact that in a fast game the leather
goes out about once every two minutes
and the danger can be realized. II Is i'm
possible to have so many fierce scrambles
without injuries resulting. The game Is
played on hard wood floors, the players are
but lightly logged, with arms and generally
legs bare. When the ball goes out 1t Is
raced for clear to the walls which stop 1t,
and as those ARE Of either wood or brick
or something harder there is a terrible
smash at the end. Each side wants to be
nrst to touch 1t and get that throw.
The change now made will simply avoid
this fight for the ball, thus removing a
HYgh and unnecessary element. IL will also
do away with so much out-of-bound work.
Under the old rule when a man was tight
pressed 1t was his game to roll, Shove, bat
or baby" the ball across the line and then
Jump on II. Thus he got a throw where the
moment before he was so harassed by inter-
ference that he couldn't find a loophole any
where. This little scheme for gaining pos
session OF the ball proved SO efficient that II
grew immensely popular, and the ball
would be Intentionally played across the
line SO, often that II grew tedious. Now the
players will strive more to keep it in and
not delay the game. There will be no OBJ
ject IN t'babying'' the ball out Just to give II
away,
At the University OF Nebraska there linger
around the big armory 'isvm" many college
traditions of what happened to men in bas-
ket ball games. One or two that are re-
/. membered will serve to show how fierce the
game could become under the old rule. All
around the sides of the gym" are the CUR
racks for the cadets. The stands are about
Ave feet high, and are inclosed with doors
of hardwood, with a small glass in the tor
OF each. once in '9s little Joe sayre. one
Of the fastest forwards the school has
known, dove so hard into, the gun racks
after a ball lying on the floor against then
that he drove his head through one Of the
doors, smashing the wood clear back agains
the guns and putting himself out Of the
game for a month. Joe's own heAdwa!
would not have been suficient to smash thu
door in, but the opponent, who was als'
after the ball. came along behind at M
snail's pace, and the double momentum wa
sufhcieht to put sayre inside the rack.
or course. the men always try to catel
themselves on their hands and arms AM
prevent their bodies from reaching the sid,
walls with much, force, but when one Il
reaching with one hand for the ball tn,
other is hardly sufficient TO check him shor
from a nine second gait. r. D. Wilson 4 o
y the 81 team had a clever way OF takinI
the walls on his shoulder as a buffer, blu
even at that game he once received mos
serious injuries. He dashed for an outsid
ball and turned his shoulder as usual, Blu
he was standing straight. and his shoulde
struck spare on the little glass window 4
the gun rack door. The glass went in an