Evening star., 1952-04-02
.Love|Iette Miss
Of 'Dinky' Layup
Decides Finale
Peoriu Coach Heads
Olympic Squad After
Victory Over Kansas
By the Assoeiated Press

L
record books will show that Clyde
Lovellette of Kansas rang up the
highest three-year scoring total
OF any player in history
an astounding 1888 points-but
the ones the big guy will never
forget are the two he didn't
make.
The human scoring machine
from Kansas missed perhaps the
most important shot of his life
"a dinky old one-footer"-
night as his team dropped a
$3.50 decision to the Peoria
Caterpillars in the finals of the
Olympic basketball trials.
Too, it will go into the books
that Peoria. the AAU champion
won the game when Howie Will
liams connected with a 20-foot
one-hander with eight seconds
to go.
But if you talk to any one who
saw the game-there were 6,23A
of 'em in Madison Square Garden
last night-they'n tell you Low
Iellette's muff of a simple layur
was the big story.
Lovellette Steals Ball.
With the score tied 5000 and
is seconds left, Lovellette elec-
trified the small but noisy crowd
by stealing the ball from Peoria s
Marcus Freiberger.
The 244-pound giant numbered
down the court and, to his sur
prise, found nary a defender un-
der the Caterpillar goal. There
were two Kansas teammates on
either side of the basket.
But Lovellette strode in-all by
himself-and went to dunk one
of the easiest baskets he'd ever
made.
The ball wouldn't behave
though, and rolled off to the left
Leaving every one in the bis
I04OAA1
II felt SICK" the All-America
ace said later. after making all
those tougher baskets I had tc
go and blow that dinky old one
footer."
BOntemps Fires to Williams.
After the historic miss, Ronnie
Bontemps of Peoria raced in anC
grabbed the rebound as the clock
spun toward the zero mark.
Bontemps turned and fired the
ball down the court to Williams
who took two steps and let fly
with a high-arching one-hander
This time the bah cut the cords
; climaxing one of the most heated
basketball games seen here this
season.
After the game there was some
question whether Lovellette should
have passed to a teammate under
the goal. But he was in the
clear and odds on him missing a
basket as easy as that probably
would have been something like
100 to l.
AS a result of its hard-earned
victory. Peoria is the supreme
ruler of amateur basketball in
this country. Five of the Cater
pillar players have qualified for
the United States Olympic team
and with seven members from
Kansas and two from the Phil
lips Oilers, will journey to Fin
land this summer for the interna-
tlonal competition.
Here are the players who will
represent Uncle Sam in Helsinki.
Peoria-Ron Bontemps (Beloit)
Frank McCabe (Marquette), Mar
Gus Freiberger (Oklahoma), Dan
Pippen (MissourD, HOWE Will
liams (Purdue).
! KanSas-Clyde Lovellette, John
Keller, Bill Lienhard, Bill Houg-
land. Bob Kenney. Dean Kelley
and Charles Hoag.
Phillips-Bob Kurland (Okla-
home A&M) and Wayne Glasgow
(Oklshoma).
Coach Warren Womble of Pc
orla was privileged to pick seven
members of his team. but, instead,
recommended to the Olympic
Committee that his starting line
up and two players from other
AAU teams be picked. The COM
mittee then chose Kurland and
Glasgow.
Womble's decision was similar
to that made for the 1948 Olym-
pics when it was agreed to take
five players from the winning
AAU team and two from other
(See BASKETBALL. Page CAY