Evening star., 1939-02-28
Eight School Teams
In Basket Battle
TaIent-P Packed
Hot Contest Is Assured
For Honor Won in '38
By GiebeI i, St. Johns
BY GEORGE HUBER.


Outstanding schoolboy basket ball
players developed in Washington
and its suburbs this season will see
action in a hot race for honors
during The Stars Metropolitan
Basket Ball Championship Tourna-
ment which opens next Monday
night at Tech gym.
Talented cage stars from Mary
land and Virginia will compete on
an equal footing with Washington
lads, striving both to help their
team toward the coveted metro
politan title and to gain the vote as
the most valuable player in the
tourney Last year the handsome
trophy that goes with that distinc-
ton was won by Jim Giebel of st.
Johns, who sparked the Cadets in
the exciting final game when they
nosed out Eastern for the cham
pionship.
st. Johns, back in defense of its
crown, again present list of notable
stars, but the other seven teams In
the race likewise have line-ups
chock full of talented individual and
team players.
Mulvihill to Bid for Title.
Among the Johnny stalWarts are
Jim Mulvihill, an outstanding de-
fense player last year, now developed
into something of scoring ace; the
smiling joey Gallagher, Frank Cady
and Joe Corrado. All are experienced
| all 1,,ifl, f,yN 0f hnf
competition behind them and all can
be counted on to play top-notch
basket ball in The Star tourney.
Eastern, public high school cham
pions for the second consecutive
year and one OF the teams looming
as grave threat to St. Johns title
aspirations, also has an entire roster
of talented cagers.
Outstanding is Bob Custer. all
high player with Western last year.
Custer, playing in but four games
because of ineligibility early in the
season, made the highest average
of any player in the series, totaling
SO points for an average of 8 per
game.
Les Cooksey, outstanding defen-
sive player, is another valuable
Lincoln Parker. In fact, the whole
team is made up of good players, in
cluding, as it does the red-haircd
Howard (Soup) Hancock, almost
certain to be a unanimous choice
for all-high teams this year: Fran
els (Bat) Battiste, one of st. Johns
stars last year, and Lenny Mills, the
tall center who formerly played
with Tech.
Tech Packed With Talent.
But the other teams are not to be
overlooked when it comes to talent.
Tech, the other Washington public
high team in the tournament. pre-
sents Eli Blank. potshot artist OF
no little merit. He was prime fac
tor in the squirt made by the WON
der Team" when it came from be-
hind to gain the runner-up position
to Eastern after losing its first
three series games. Moe Schulman,
Vic De Leon and Marshall Delli1ger
are a few more of the Manual
Trainers who will bear watching in
the tourney.
Gonzaga, entered in The Star
tournament for the first time, Is
out to make a good showing with
such players as Lane O'Donnell,
Buddy O'Brien and Fred Rice.
Rice, particularly, has been out
standing for the Purple as scoring
aid.
The Maryland and Virginia
schools, too, can present outstanding
players. The Montgomery County
choice still lies between Bethesda
Chevy Chase and Montgomery Blair
pending a decision as to whether
they will play off the title since each
has a victory over the other. Either
would send stars into the tourney.
Star Center With Mounts.
Mount Rainier, the Prince Georges
County champion for three years,
already has accepted an invitation.
Among its stalwarts is Joe Baumann,
center who holds something of a
record. In his debut as a player he
scored Is points, mark believed
to be unequaled in this section.
Other good Mount players are Chuck
O'Conner and Jack Glynn.
George Washington High of Alex
andria also has an outstanding cen
ter in Ed NoWland. Last season he
averaged II points per game and
was chosen as center on the all
State quintet. This year he has
not slackened his pace.
Little Jefferson High of Falls
Church, the first Fairfax County
representative ever to be in The Star
tourney, will have such good players
as Bunny Gibson, Rubin McNab and
Ed Uchabod) Dixon.