The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-03-14
MOBILE HUMBLED
 BY LOCAL SQUAD Fastest Basketball Exhibition of
 the Season FINAL SCORE WAS 26 TO 20 Unsatisfactory Work of Mobiles Ref cree Christian Was Only Blot on Exhibition-Mobile Forfeits
 Championship Claim.

Birmingham whipped the pennant grab i bers, referee arI all
 Just as Mobile was reaching for the
 basketball championship of the south, the i Birmingham Athletic club slipped the sphere out of her hands Ind pitched It
 lightly into the local basket.
 A fine crowd of rooters witnessed the
 banner game of the year, cheered the
 best team in Birmingham to success i while the band played 26 to 20 Never 1 before this season had the Athletic boys i battled so bravely, stood together in such { fine form, or played anything like they 1 did last night. In fact the new guards
 Cole and Hilty, had for the first time
 reached their prime. Mobile went down
 in defeat before southern team for | the first time in four years when the To- 1 calls administered a similar dose. | The boys started in to win. They de- l clared that on Friday, the 18th of March, | they would overcome their hoodoo, and straightway they made 15 points, doubling 1 up with 1S points in the second half, | and closing with Is cheers for Shute, l Shute, Shute!
 The chairman of the committee did not
 
 Birmingham has played in hard luck | against several teams which Mobile has l beaten However he claims the best team in the south, and says the penhaht will fly in Birmingham next year. me game was a great victory for Shute, since he had refrained from addressing the membership banquet the night before in order to pray down bad luck on the Gult Gulls.
 The dissatisfaction with Mobiles inn ported referee, Christian, was the only blot on the exhibition. The visitors re- fused to play unless their man refereed both halves, something never heard or before, and he followed it up by calling 20 fouls on Birmingham, and not sin gle one on Mobile. His decisions were bad from beginning to end. While hls own men played the toughest kind of game. he was blind as bat, and had not Umpire J. l.. Miles taken hanu they would have escaped without 1oul. Christian went into the game to win on throwing foul goals. His man Penny was great at that sport but although he had 30 opportunities he only threw 10.
 The Athletic club in the persons or Mckinney, Chairsell Thomas, Spencer, Hity and Cole, can claim a bunch or stars from which the brightest would be hard to pick. They all distinguished themselves with difficult work.
 Mckinney opened the hrst halI WllH a pretty goal throw Mobile then rushed in three noAts, after which the locals scored on long pass from one basket to the other by Mckinney. There ensued series of fouls in which both teams secured a few points and then Mckinney to Spencer, Chairsell to Mckinney scored two great goals with a vim The pass work of the locals during the latter part of this half capped by a wonderful long basket by Mckinney closed the first half, 13 to g.
 Spencer's work in the second half, from one goal to the other, was remarka ble. Mckinney made another basket from the corner and then Guard Hilty threw the sensational goal of the evening. Stand ing almost in the center, he Tipped 1t over with ease At this point Mobile be- gan picking up. bringing the score to 1921, but a pass from Thomas to Me Kinney and two foul goals cinched the game. Cole developed wonderful form, although he was guarding the star for ward, a veritable mountain giant. foI1