Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-02-11
SIX IN S. A. GROUP
ARE AMONG BEST
Maryland Is One of Them.
Old Liners Capture Thriller.
G. w. Is Defeated.
BY H. c. BYRD.

ever played in the South in any
one year. In all previous tourna-
mentS the various sections have
, entered strong quintS, but this
season it is apparent that every
section has several strong quintS.
In short, there are more good
basket ball teams in the South
right now than in any previous
season Since basket ball began to
be played. And virtually all of
them will take part in the cham
pionShip struggles at Atlanta.
Take the South Atlantic section as an
example. Six teams are strong and any
one of them has close to an even
chance in any game in which it takes
part. North Carolina, Duke, Virginia,
Washington and Lee, North Carolina
State and Maryland are far above the
average and there is very little differ
ence between any of them. For in
stance, Virginia beat Maryland by 3
points, North Carolina then whipped
Virginia by a short margin. and last
night Maryland turned around and took
a game from North Carolina by 2
points. And that seems to be the stu
alton in other sections.
Alabama, which last year won the
tournament championship, is out with
about the same team and is going
great guns. 1t seems to be an excep-
tionally strong combination. Georgia
apparently has the best five in its his
tory, while kentucky is even stronger
than last season when it was regarded as
one of the best. Tulane, Georgia Tech,
and several of the other schools in the
Far South probably are not quite so
strong as Alabama, Georgia or Ken
lucky, bp are able to talke care of them
selves so well that they are dangerous in
any game they play.
The tournament this year viii begin
with the strongest array that has ever
waited the call to do battle in Atlanta's
big auditorium. And it is absolutely
certain that the road Travelled by the
final winner will be the StormieSt any
QIint has ever weathered. From the
first whistle, every contest is likely to
be a battle royal, with the possibility
that the final victor may be team
which was hardly given chance at the
beginning. A strong second string
usually plays big part in the tourna-
ment, and In such q tournament as this
is to be, may be the deciding factor.
GEORGETOWN has lost two athletes as
q result of the nlid-year examinations.
who, if they fail to get back in good
standing, viii be greatly missed
Especially is this true of White in base
ball. The big pitcher has been George
towns mainstay on the slab for the last
two years and it is doubtful If any
body will be found to replace him. that
is anybody who stands much chance of
being as effective. The other man sure
to be missed is Brennan, end on the
foot ball team. Brennan held down
one of the f1anking positions last Fall
and next season was expected TO star.
He was elected captain.
ONLY one basket ball game is listed
~ here tonight, Washington College
at Maryland. And this Is likely 70
be Just about as close and hard game
as any the College Park men have
had. Washington College, like other
colleges in Maryland, had rather win
from the State University than from
any other opponent, and Il usually keys
itself up to q brilliant effort in this
particular game.
Maryland, in all-round athletics, is
far ahead of the other colleges in the
State, but 1t has a difficult time against
some of the other schools in the branch
of athletics to which those schools pay
most attention. And with Washing
ton College it happens to be basket
ball that has been its strong point for
years. With Western Maryland, 1t is
foot ball: with Hopkins, it is lacrosse,
while washington College, as a general
thing, has been comparatively as strong
in basket ball as these other two schools
have been in foot ball and lacrosse.
Last night Washington College
whipped Western Maryland without
much difficulty, running up a 42-to-31
score. 1t came over TO College Park
last night figuring it has at least an
even chance against Maryland. If
Ia vfmwS d -.
the grueling xtra-period battle it went
through last night with North Carolina,
the game tonight ought to be brilliantly
played. It Is to begin at BIS.
IF any other college basket ball game,
j since basket ball first was played
among local colleges, ever developed
as many thrills and tense situations as
that in which Maryland beat North
Carolina last night by 80 to 81, then
1t has not been played within the
memory Of anybody now covering sports
for local newspapers.
Fourteen times was the score tied,
with the lead constantly interchanging
by Just a point or two. AS a matter
of fact, the score was tied during the
greater part Of the time, as it seemed
that as one team got point to break
the tie the other would come through
Immediately with a duplicate score to
tie things up again.
For the last IS minutes Of the game
the big crowd simply INDUCED itself in
a continuous orgy of hysterial yelling,
apparently realizing it was watching a
basket ball game the like of which it
had never before seen nor might ever
see again.
An extra period was necessary to
reach a decision, the score being 26
TO 26 at the end of the regulation
game.
Ronkin led the Maryland five in scor-
ing with 10 points and Berger followed
close behind him with 10. Ronkin
probably played the greatest game of
his life. as he did about everything
on a basket ball for and with the
ball that anybody could do. or be ex-
pected to do. 1t was he who. with
only IS seconds of the regulation game
left to play, and the score standing
IS to IS against his team, stood en-
the foul line and calmly dropped the
ball through the net to even up the
game and give his team its chance to
win in the extra period. Under such
stress as that, it took real courage to
make good Five seconds after, North
Carolina player nervously missed an
attempt from the foul mark that would
have given his team victory.
North Carolina presented a rangy.
good basket ball team, the best one
season. It was composed of exception
ally good players, well coached. 1t is
a team that has chance to win any