The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1939-03-16

Z, IT halftime.
BY ED MEAGHER
UNIVERSITY PAVILION, Seat.
tle-Stricken with basket blind
ness malady which grays
coaches hair overnight and flat.
ten sthe best of teams. Stadium
was given a 39-to-20 scutlting BY
Yakima here last night in Its
opening game of the 18th annual
hoop tournament.
The utter Tiger defeat was the
jaw-dropping surprise OF the day
although scores in several of the
other seven tits were ridiculously
more lopsided than expected.
Longvicw's Lu m b RACKS,
who shoot accurately and run
Hike . deer. whipped Everett
Cross-State league champions,
- TO 20. establishing them
selves, along with Hoquiam
and Lewis and Clark, rs fav-
orites TO take the title.
Lewis and Clark outclassed
Bellingham. 81 to II, and Hoquiam
swarmed over little Rockford, 40
to Is. Sadly enough for one of
these two fair-haired fives, they'll
clash tonight at 7:30 o'clock.
Out of the running for the cham
pionship. Stadium can climb no
higher now than fifth place and
1t must win three straight games
to do that.
The Tigers face Everett at $50
tonight. They will go home for
keeps II they lose, but a victory
would give them pretty smooth
sailing into the fifth place berth.
All possible opponents afte r
Everett are comparatively weak.
MEET GULLS
Should they pluck the Gulls, and
they have split two-game series
with them this season. they will
meet either Rockford or Belling-
ham Friday at 2 o'clock. A tri-
umph here and they will play
either Morton. Bothell. Walla
Walla or Colfax Saturday at 2,
the winner of which will take
fifth and the loser eighth.
There was no resemblance at all
between the Tigers of last night
and those who won their tickets
to the meet with good. sound
basketball. They must have been
eight or nine other fellows.
Certainly they did not look
like the boys who averaged IS
points . game during the
year, placed second In the
Cr0ss-State loop, captured
their 10th straight city cham
pionship and had acquired .
well-earned reputation ~
''strong finishers."
And. most certainly. they did not
resemble the lads who defeated
the Pirates twice during the regu-
lar season.
There Is no explaining their
rout unless II was too much Gil
more, who was q standout, scor-
ing IS points for the Yaks. II was
as unaccountable as II was COM
plete. Perhaps the Yakima ink
had something to do with 1t. The
Tigers had met the Pirates twice
before at the state meets. in 1886
and 81, and both time were beaten
by the identical scores of 25 to "a
YAKS TAKE EARLY LEAD
The first quarter ended with
Yakima In the van. Z to s. an ad
vantage which they heightened
steadily as the game continued
Score at the half was 10 to 8. ant
at the close of the third perioc
II stood n to IL.
Getting away from basketball
for a couple of paragraphs. Sta
dunn did score at least one dis
tinct triumph. That was the de
lightful show staged by its larg'
roofing section. which included tn
Tiger band, led by r, G. Fussel
and charmingly set off by Its eigh
drug maporesses.
The girls, fctchingly sttired
In white and twirling their
cleaning batOns expertly.
marched up and down the pa
vilion floor during the half
and the applause they received
probaly h still echoing around
the mammoth structure this
morning.
Only one game during the open
ing day may be rated in tn
thriller" class and that was tn
first tilt played-between Gran
Coulee and Morton. the dam sit
boys winning out in the last fey
moments Of play. "a to 23. A TO,
shot, meshed in the closin
seconds. was the difference. Gran
Coulee will play Wapato at
| o'clock today. Wapato. coache
by Eddie Mccoy, former Colleg
Of Puget Sound star. defeate
Bothell 33 to 2s.
Blaines. although not rated o
par with any of the teams re
naming in the lower. or suicide
bracket. became the favorite I
reach the finals via the uppe