Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1915-03-02
Basket BAH.
N. II. 8 4s; PORTLAND Il. s. q.

The basket ball game at tho Oper
House Friday evening was somewhat Q
q surprise to Norway's most ardent sur
portsrs. While they knew that they ha
team of which they might we'll fec
proud and that the boys were prepare,
to play the game OF their lives, 1t is SAT
to say that not person could have BEEF
found before the game that would hav
made the prediction that Norway woul,
win over Portland High by more thai
twenty points. 1t was expected that tn
game would be very close and there wer
few who thought there would be NOR
than five points difference in the score o
the two teams at the end.
The work of the Norway team In tn
first half was truly remarkable, ant
there has not been game since baske
ball has been played In this town IL
| which team has shown such speed
such team play and such accurate pass
ing as was witnessed in this first twenty
minutes of play. The home team actu
ally played the visitors, one Of the fast
est high school teams in the state, of
their feet. Every Norway man seemed
TO know just where he should be to q
in the team play and pass after pass wa
made by them from one player to another
man on his team without even a glance
10 the direction in which the ball wa.
thrown. However, the man that wal
supposed to be at that certain point wa,
almost always there and got the ball
and it was this splendid development Of
team play, passing and speed that gave
Norway its lead in the first half. A lead
which they were able to hold to the end
II was evident that Norway went into
this game with determination that the
visitors should not be leading at the end
of the first half if they had it in theil
power to stop them, and from the time
Smith tossed the first basket to the end
of the half there was no let-up in their
aggressive game. The crowd, while
ever ready TO give the visitors hand for
a good play, simply went wild over the
game that the local boys were putting
up, and the score of 26 to at the end OF
the half just about showed how the play
ing of the two teams compared up to
that point.
In the second half Norway played
more on the defensive and were evident
ly striving to hold their lead rather than
run up large score. In this they were
successful, and it is rather peculiar fact
that in this half the two teams scored ex-
sctly the same number of points, each
having ~ points to its credit, thus Nor
ways lead at the end was the same as at
the close of the first half, or 81 points.
The visitors showed to much better ad.
vantage during this period, their most
weakness being in trusting to
make baskets from too great distance
instead of working the ball over near
their own basket where their chance Of
a successful throw was much better.
Norway's method Of attack was some
what changed for this game. Sanderson
partly because of the fact that he is now
the one man on the Norway team that
every visiting team tries to keep con-
stantly covered, and partly because of an
injured side, made very few tries for
baskets, but instead played more on the
defense and fitted in finely with the
other members of the team in feeding
the ball to Shepard and Smith, the two
Norway men who were expected TO get
the baskets. This plan worked to per-
lection, and the basket throwing Of these
two men will long be remembered, Shep-
ard in particular playing as he has never
played before. In fact, so good was his
work that the coach of the Portland
team said after the game that Shepard
was the best center his team had played
against this year.
With one exception the visitors played
4 clean, hard game, and their work was
enjoyed by the large crowd
Of spectators. The work of O'Connell
and Russell as referees was high class,
and they handled the game in fine shape.
Near the close of the second half, after
it was evident that the game was lost by
they put in two substitutes,
two big husky fellows, one of whom,
began to rough it as soon as
be got on to the floor, and almost imme-
diately he and Klain were in a mixup.
A few of the spectators rushed on to the
floor, an unnecessary performance, but
the trouble was quickly over, and the
Portland management, seeing they had
made mistake, took the offending player
off the floor, and put the man who had
been playing back into the game. This
ended the trouble, and but for this one
incident the game was as clean as could
be asked for.
The one greatest favor that some of
those who attend these games could do
the Norway High School basket ball
management would be to keep their
mouths closed. Norway plays a clean
game, and it is their wish that every
waiting team hare he treated in a pentle-
manly and sportsmanlike manner. There
is absolutely no excuse for abuse of an
official like O'Connell, and the few that
do these things should realize that they
are the ones that give their town bad
name in other places. Norway High
does not need this kind Of support and
does not want 1t, and If there are any
who cannot control their feelings and
refrain from these acts, the thing for
them to do is to stay away from the
game.
The lineup: