CONVERSE BASKETBALL 1938 INTERCOLLEGIATE CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT EALIZING that there is more truth than fiction in the quotation R “If you build a better mouse-trap than your neighbor, the world will make a beaten path to your door’’, many athletic coaches of the United States were of the opinion that they could build a basketball tournament that would be better and more suited to their needs than any of the existing tournaments. Too, by the organization of an Inter- collegiate National Basketball Championship Tournament, there would be a distinct opportunity to compare the quality of ‘basketball as it is played in the various ‘sections of the United States; and through the process of elimination to really put the championship stamp upon the most outstanding team. For several years in the annual and semi-annual “buzzing bees” of the coaches, the need of such a tournament was made evident. Consequently, the sentiment crystallized and an initial attempt was made in the Municipal Auditorium, Kansas City, Missouri, March 9-12, 1937. The representative coaches, who had entered teams in the tourna- ment, at once caught the spirit of enthusiasm and saw the future possi- bilities of this, their first tournament. Consequently, they selected Coach E. S. Liston as the modern Joshua to make the journey to the National A.A.U. Tournament in Denver. There, Mr. Liston inter- viewed leading basketball coaches and athletic directors from colleges and universities from every section of the United States. So manifest was the interest that Mr. Liston returned to Kansas City, made arrangements for the new municipal audi- torium for the week of March 7, 1938; secured financial backing for the tournament; and then began a careful campaign for the selection of a national board of management. In this, the com- mittee was very desirous that every section of the United States be represented and that men of sec- tional and national prominence in the athletic world be invited to membership on the governing board. A perusal and study of the following list is prima facie evidence that the Board’s personnel is representative of the nation’s best and that it should result in the Intercollegiate National Basket- ball Championship Tournament becoming the most prominent basketball tournament in the United States. The West Coast is represented by John Bunn, basketball coach, Stanford University, the sponsor of the movement in the Pacific Coast Conference and the states of California and Nevada. Eugene Eberhardt, athletic director and basketball coach, Oregon State Normal University, brings in the states of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Arthur “Dutch” Lonberg, basketball coach, Northwestern Uni- versity, Evanston, Illinois, connects the east and west by the midwestern links of Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois. The southern tier of states have for their sponsor A. F. Rupp, basketball coach, University of Kentucky, who brings into the fold members of the Southern Conference, Southeastern Conference, and the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association. From the Eastern seaboard comes Clair F. Bee, athletic director of Long Island University, New York; besides his state, his district includes the New England states. Forrest Cox, basketball coach, University of Colorado, ably represents the Rocky Mountain Conference, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, and Colorado. To S. M. Cle athletic director, New Mexico University, goes the task of selecting the representation for New Mexico and Arizona. Al Boggett, athletic director, West Texas Teachers’ College, has the baili- wick of the Southwest Conference and Texas. North and South Dakota, lowa and Nebraska will be represented by R. G. Rogers, basketball coach, Morningside College, Sioux City, lowa. : EMIL S. LISTON Chairman of the Intercollegiate National Basketball Championship Tournament BOO K NATIONAL BASKETBALL by THOMAS A. EVANS, publicity Director, Baker University Missouri and Kansas are piloted by Pat Mason, athletic director, Rockhurst College, Kansas City, Missouri. Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama come into the fold through W. B. Woodson, athletic director, State Teachers’ College, Conway, Arkansas. Other Board members are: Roy E. Tillotson, athletic director, Franklin College, Indiana; Roy Clifford, basketball coach, Western Reserve University, Cleveland, representative from Ohio and Michigan; Henry R. Iba, athletic director, Oklahoma A. & M., Norman. He speaks for the Oklahoma and Missouri- Valley Conferences. E. S. Liston, ath- letic director, Baker University, is chairman of the Board of Managers. To each board member, in addition to the responsibilities of coun- sel regarding the general plans in conducting the tournament, is assigned the duties of chairman of a committee in his respective district and the dispersion of information on the tournament plans to the colleges and universities in his district. He will also name his own district commit- tee, which in turn will complete the plans of participation. The various committees will select teams from their districts for tournament representation; they may choose the conference champions; select on the basis of the season’s record; or through elimination tournaments. Arrangements have been completed to stage the tournament in Municipal Auditorium, Kansas City, Missouri, March 7, 1938. Should the brackets in- clude more than 32 teams, the additional dates of March 5 and 6 have been tentatively reserved. Inasmuch as the committee is sponsoring a National Intercollegiate Championship Tournament, no rules of eligibility have been decided upon other than that the teams must represent standard insti- tutions of college or university rank and will be governed by the rules of eligibility in their respective ‘conferences. In case a team is not in a particular conference, the rules will be set up by the faculty committee of the institution. Mr. Liston states that the tournament is not the tool of any individual or organization, but is the out-growth of the crystallization of sentiment of the college and university coaches who for years have felt the need of such a tournament. It is an attempt to establish a national clearing-house for college and university basketball. It has been made clear by the chairman that the Board of Management is composed entirely of college and university athletic men and consequently no school nor conference should fear laxness in the management or rules of participation. The tournament has been underwritten to the extent that teams participating will be guaranteed entertainment (hotel and meals) during their participation and an additional 24 hours’ entertainment following their elimination. Should the receipts amount to more than necessary to care for local expenses, the balance will be placed in a reserve fund and will be judiciously cared for by the Board of Management until the fund is sufficient to enable the tournament to be self-supporting in future years. Already civic organizations of greater Kansas City are making preparations for many forms of entertainment for the visiting teams. Alumni secretaries of colleges have expressed a desire for alumni meet- ings of their respective colleges during the tournament dates. The open- ing night, high school teams will be complemented; Thursday night, Dr. James W. Naismith, Lawrence, Kansas, the father of basketball, will be honored. Last, but not least, provision is being made for the entertainment of teams consisting of nine players and the coach. I think the Converse shoe is the best basketball shoe made. If | had my choice I would have no other shoe. They wear and give your feet protection and they are “hydraulic brakes” on the floor. J. KELLY BAKER, Coach, Burneyville High School, Burneyville, Okla.