MEN’S BASKETBALL Y.M.C.A. In Fine Form

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31043, 26 April 1966, Page 13

MEN’S BASKETBALL Y.M.C.A. In Fine Form

The splendid form of the Y.M.C.A. team and the remarkable skill in the centre of the Canterbury and South Island representative, R. Entwistle, were the most impressive features of the inter-club men’s basketball A grade matches in Cowles Stadium on Saturday.

Y.M.C.A.’s performance I against University B was in sharp contrast to the mediocre play it produced the previous week. It was a clear indication that University A, which has had three overwhelming wins so far, may not have the easy path to championship honours that seemed evident in the opening rounds. Y.M.C.A. won the game 46-30, after leading 20-10 at half-time.. The other two senior games followed the pattern of previous weeks. Y-Boys and Burnham both suffered overwhelming losses to High School Old Boys and University A, respectively. Points, after three rounds, are: University A 6, High School Old Boys 4, Y.M.C.A. 4, Burnham 2, University B 2, Rex 0, Y-Boys 0. COMBINATION Y.M.C.A. <6: R. Entwistle 16, J. Burns 8, A. Rattray 8, P. Ross 6, C. Walton 6, M. Busch 2. UNIVERSITY B 30: W. E. Smith 21, Ming 5, R. Nunns 2, A. Riley 2. Y.M.C.A. settled down welt and quickly established its superiority over University B, apart from Smith, a team of only limited experience. By half-time, Y.M.C.A. led, 20-10, and a runaway victory seemed imminent. When the teams took the court after halftime, a series of fast breaks, made possible by some excellent positional play, sent Y.M.C.A. racing further ahead. Eight points were added to the I Y.M.C.A. total without the students scoring one basket. Until this time Smith had been feeding his other men. Unfortunately, they wasted most of the opportunities he presented. Then he decided that there was only one course open to him and launched a one-man offensive which completely bamboozled the opposition. He finished the game with 21 points to his credit, while the rest of his team scored only nine. The other University players, however, did support Smith well and their defence was reasonably adequate. Y.M.C.A. played well as a team, and over confidence, possibly tiredness, probaby contributed to the relaxation of its offensive In the closing stages. R. Entwistle played very efficiently in the centre, fed his men well and was quick to make the most of his own scoring opportunities. Honours were fairly evenly shared, with J. Burns possibly showing the most improvement from the previous week. GOOD DEFENCE UNIVERSITY A 45: P. Stigley 12, M. J. Askew 9, C. Morris 8 G. Williams 8, J. Stead (, Siong 2. BURNHAM U: C. P. Dyson 8, A. G. Ward 6, D. Watson 1, B. Rose 1. There was never any doubt about the outcome of this match, although towards the end University eased up appreciably. Its offensive was excellent and its defence so good that Burnham only had a meagre four points at half-time. One of the surprising features of University’s play was its ability to contain the former Canterbury representative, C, P. Dyson. In the two previous games, Dyson scored 21 points On , Saturday, he was stlU the guiding light behind Burnham, but his scoring was restricted to only eight points —H n » ers l ty .. rebounded well and its shooting was of a particularly high standard. The variety of its play was also very satisfactory. Fast breaks “? 4,et moves, as weH as indien^ U ** brilliance, were apparG Williams demonstrated a particularly accurate set shot. M. Askew also impressed with nis accuracy. As a guard the New Zealand trialiet, C. Morris never met his equal. He X much jf the game on the be’nrt Sh! *if n on . dattßce was superb. He slso scored eight Points. Another Improve per* wu p %13L Un J vep "‘ y JM-f-• SUgiey. He used his rebounding well from both ends. * Burnham was very much a one-man team. University realn»e<l>h2 had *° keep D y* o n out o£ the game and did so with | unusual efficiency. *° wlth

OVERWHELMED HIGH SCHOOL OLD BOYS St: A. Hounsell 19. M. Gleason 14, P. Bell 8, K. Milligan 8, G. Orchard 4, S. Hunt 3, R. Milligan Y-BOYS IS: R. Ingram 6, R. Dew 6, B. Skinner 4, N. Vincent High Schoo] Old Boys had the easiest of victories over Y-Boys, a side which seems destined to win the wooden spoon this seasori. At half-time, Old Boys led, 25-8, and all hope was not lost for Y-Boys, which was playing better than it had done in previous matches. However, the second spell set the seal on the match. With A. Hounsell, scoring freely from the centre, Old Boys scored at will. Y-Boys tired very rapidly as the game neared Its end, mainly because of inability to make the ball work for them. Hounsell was the outstanding player of the match scoring freely with jump shots from under the basket, although his play sometimes became a little vigorous. M. Gleason was another prominent performer. His accurate jump shot brought him 14 points. K. Ewings had the unenviable task of marking Hounsell and did the job well until he was fouled off. N. Vincent was an efficient guard for Y-Boys. Other results were:— Senior Reserve.—Wigram 28, Y.M.C.A. B 19; University C 39, L.D.S. 22: Christchurch B.H.S. 50, Rex B 19. C Grade.—N.A.C. 30, Burnsco B 5: Taxes 37, Stars 16; Y.M.C.A. D 22. Hagley A 17; Toe H A 33, Y-Boys C 16.