Monday, March 18, 1957 University Daily Kansam
Page 5
—(Laughead photo)
halt and casually looks over Kreb's shoulder to see who is getting the better of the battle as Bob Billings, No. 25, peeks in from behind.
I WANT MY BALL—Gene Elstun, No. 12,
and SMU's Jim Krebs fight for possession of the
ball. Wilt Chamberlain comes to a screeching
Season's Turning Point Could Be Kreb's Fouls
If the University of Kansas defeats San Francisco Friday in Kansas City, Mo., in the semi-final game of the NCAA tournament then goes on to win the crown, most fans will probably have forgotten by then what may have been the turning point in the Jayhawkers' title drive.
Although there have been many other "turning points" and there will probably be more, the fouling out of the SMU-Kansas game of 6-8 Jim Krebs with five minutes to go was a big factor in the berth the Jayhawkers earned in Kansas City.
Dick Harp, when asked about the turning point of the SMU game said, "No doubt about it—when Krebs fouled out."
Friday night was another of the real thrillers. When, late in the game Southern Methodist took a two-point lead, it began to look as if the Mustangs had been taking lessons from Iowa State and Oklahoma A&M—it was the same pattern.
But as Harp said, "Elstun came through for us again with that last minute goal. He's always been a great player under pressure. He was the boy who got that clutch basket up in Kansas City against Iowa State when we needed it too."
Elstun tied the game with his clutch basket but SMU took the ball and began running out the clock, hoping to take one last second and score, giving Kansas no chance to retaliate—that's the way the Cyclones and Aggies did it.
King Blocks Shot
The Mustangs took that last second shot but Maurice King blocked it and the game went into overtime. From there it was easy for the Jayhawkers.
In the Kansas dressing room after the game everyone was just too happy to talk much.
Wilt Chamberlain said, "Krebs plays good for a big boy. SMU is one of the best we've played this year.
We played better than they did but they hit better than we did. I'm sure this is the best game we've played and all I can say is it is sure was a good one to win."
All King could say was, "I'm so happy there isn't really much to say. We played good and I think the score shows it."
Gene Elstun, the boy who again came through with the tiniest field goal of the game said. "It was a big one to win tonight. I just
hope we can keep going and not let up."
Crowd Is Hostile
There wasn't much encouragement for the Jayhawkers from the fans in Dallas Friday night. The capacity crowd of 7,600 had to be quiet several times by pleas from the public address announcer. When Wilt stepped up to shoot a free throw he was booed roundly from all sides and his all-around fine play and good sportsmanship did little to pacify the fans.
As Johnny Parker put it Friday night, "It was Wilt's rebounding that made the difference. I guess everyone down here now believes that Chamberlain is what he is built up to be."
All agreed it was a big one to win, and who knows, it may have been the game which decided the 1957 college basketball king.
The three other semi-final berths for the NCAA championship round in Kansas City Friday and Saturday were decided in regional tournaments throughout the nation.
It was there that North Carolina's undefeated and No. 1 ranked Tar Heels subdued Syracuse, 67-58. In winning this game Coach Frank McGuire's crew established an all time single season collegiate record of 30 straight victories.
Perhaps the most important one, from the point of view of Dick Harp and his Kansas Jayhawkers, was the Eastern Regional held at Philadelphia.
Tar Heels Keep Pace
Tar Heels Down Syracuse
In the consolation game for third place Canisius defeated Lafayette, 82-76.
In the Far Western regional playoff finals at Corvallis, Ore., the University of San Francisco edged California, champions of the Pacific Coast Conference, 50-46.
title in 1955 and 1956 when they were led by all-American Bill Russell.
Don Again in Semi-inals San Francisco will be shooting for its third consecutive NCAA championship. The Dons won
Brigham Young won third place in the consolation game by defeating Idaho State. 65-54.
Don Again In Semi-finals
The Midwestern Regional, played at Lexington, Ky., saw a battling Michigan State team pull a big rally to down favored Kentucky, 86-68.
Spartans Not Strangers
Spartans Not Strangers The Michigan State style of play is nothing new to basketball fans in this area. The Spartans were the guest team in this year's Big Seven tournament, and won third place through their ball hawking and hustle.
Don Faurot, athletic director at Missouri earned letters in football, basketball and baseball at MU from 1921 to 1925.
Kansas Gaining In Prestige For NCAA Final Round
Former champ Kansas, with two impressive victories already and a "home court" edge in the showdown games coming up, was rapidly gaining backing today as the "hot" team of the NCAA basketball tournament as it awaited the arrival of the three regional winners.
But, more than that, Kansas has so far been more impressive than record-breaking North Carolina, which seems to play only well enough to win each time.
Oklahoma City Coach Abe Lemons says the Jayhawkers have something else going for them, too—he thinks the officials "protect" the 7-foot Chamberlain.
"Everyone is so Chamberlain conscious," Lemons said. "We could touch him and a foul would be called. But if he touches you, it isn't a foul."
And he added that the officials allow Chamberlain to spread-eagle himself and bump rivals when he lands after leaping for a rebound.
But even Lemons admitted,
"Chamberlain doesn't need that much help—we probably could have had me refereeing and we still couldn't have beaten them." He predicted it would take "some sharp-shooting team that gets hot" to stop the Jayhawkers.
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