The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1920-12-13
PAT PAGE, WONDER FIVE
COACH, TELLS BASKET TEAMS
TOPLAY THE BALL; NOT man
Nsa Baskean Explains His Requisites for Scoring Aa
cAfne That Cannot Stspped-Lkes TALL Rang P1ayss
Wlo Can Follow Ball -2s
By II. O. (PATD PAGE.

THE WONDER FIVE-the scor-
ing machine that can't b stopped.
This ia the ideal which every
basketball coach builds towards,
but he is always handicapped In
securing the cogs 30 necessary to
it
In considering such Q team tho
coach looks first to the parsonnel
the tall, rangy men with height
for follow-up shots and Wh0.1n01le
the ball in q high plane.
Then, in the defensive sone. there
must be men with stonewall quail
ties plus weight and quiemsss--
floor men who play On the hall,
the most important part Of this
WONDER FIVE.
Schooled in handling the ball.
the WONDER FIVE gets set for the
tipoff. Signals fash and the game
is on. The lightning combination
play that follows the tip or whsn
the ball is thrown from out Of
bounds piles up the score.
I find that different teams
throughout the country employ dif-
ferent styles in putting the punch
into their systems. The long pass
or the short pass, tho bounce or
the dribble, is pulled with in
dividual cleverness.
Different Styles.
Go north into Wisconsin and
you'll find the short pass being
used. Through Illinois and In
diana you have the long pass. In
Ohio and to the east l find they
build around the individual with
his dribble, while in the localities
where the officiating is lax the
block and defensive play pre-
dominate.
In football we have clever open
field runners. So on the basket
court there are the floor men play
ing on the ball. They dribble
cleverly, but 1t takes smart
piece Of defensive play to stop
these speed men.
Glory Misplaced.
Also on the gridiron the open
field tackle is appreciated. So 1t
is in the basket game The guard
who smashes on the ball mot the
mani is a most valuable cog on
the defensive.
AS in all other sports the glory
goes to the player who scores.
Sometimes this honor is mis-
placed, II seems to me. The man
who makes an assist is deserving
Of credit
In baseball a player is credited
with an assist for making a good
stop or peg.
Credit Guards
II seems to me that the basket
ball player should be given as
sists the same way for his helping
in the play that eventually leads
to scoring. A guard could be
given a credit for a good inter-
ception or block OF the ball. fol-
lowed by a pass that can be han
died.
Figures prove that the team
getting the greater number OF
basket shots generally wins. IN
baseball there enters in the hit
! ting luck Of the game. Basket
shooters should be content II they
hit the rim. When they are loss
ing the ball that close to the loop
some of THE shots are going TO
count
Long Shooter.
= On this WONDER FIVE there
Is a place for the long shooter.
Take a team that has five good
shooters on the floor and they are
an almost certain high-scoring ma
chine.
Probably in an average college
game one out OF every four shots
are scored from beyond the
seven-yard zone. Some teams rely
on slipping the ball into the basket
at close range. playing the BACK
board from the side. Their aver
age is probably one out OF Two
within the five-yard radius.
Follow.up Throw.
< Then again there is the slam
bang. hit-or-miss shooter. Inc
neares. comparison can think OF
| TOR tnlS Is INC DhttCh 80
land-run play in baseball. In pas
lketball they call him the folioW-up
shooter. Every team NEEDS
PLAYER OF this type. His playing
is always a threat. AZ.
Many a game is won on tals
driving up method Of attack: a
inr. shooter can be hurried.
c , shot can be smeared. but
the fo!low-up scoring play cannot
The rules of the game call Tor
omen play with much scoring.
However. in some districts - .ns
snectator demands a rough anai..
But the WONDER FIVE does
! not plav rough. II plays smooth
" clean-cut and with power. the
coes have mastered the side-step. /
the pivot, the feint and the spin:
Greatest Of all. its members PLAY :
THE BALL AND NOT THE MAN.