MARCH 20, 1950
FEW UPSETS AS CAGE TOURNAMENT GETS UNDERWAY
The opening round of the AIAA college basketball tournament went pretty much according to script over the weekend as all of the first and second seeds advanced to the round of 16. It marked the first time since the 1942-43 tournament that all eight number one and two seeds survived the opening round. The third seeds did not have it quite so easy as both Coastal California and Maryland State were knocked out in the opening round.
The West Region feels like a throwback to the early days of the sport after a pair of Academia Alliance clubs advanced marking the first time since the spring of 1933 that the oldest conference in collegiate basketball placed two teams in the second round. Those two would be Pierpont and Ellery. For the Purple the 61-48 upset of Lane State was their first tournament win since 1925 while the Bruins also knocked out a West Coast Athletic Assocation team, beating Coastal California 60-59 in overtime for their first win in tournament play since 1935.
Ellery, a 6th seed that reached the tournament by winning the Academia Alliance post-season tourney, needed a shot from the top of the key by Arnie Hathaway to drop with 13 seconds remaining in overtime to knock out the Dolphins. Hathaway was on fire all game, finding the basket 10 times from the field as part of his game high 24 points. Next up for the Bruins will be Indiana A&M after the second seeded Reapers, led by Orville Courville's 15 points, downed Utah A&M 48-42.
Pierpont, which had a surprisingly easy time with Lane State, will have its work cut out for itself Thursday when the Purple tangle with the top seed in the West in Carolina Poly. James Halle scored 17 points and George Bertram added 15 as the Cardinals outlasted a gutsy effort from Flagstaff State, a school that went just 14-16 on the season but won the Southern Border Conference title, 67-61.
MIDWEST REGION
Like in the West Region, the number three seed in the Midwest was bounced from the tournament in the opening round. That would be South Atlantic Conference champion Maryland State as the Bengals fell by a 62-57 count to Southwestern Alliance champion Lubbock State in what was the Hawks first tournament win in a dozen years. For Maryland State it was just their third-ever appearance in the AIAA tournament, and they have yet to win a tournament game.
The Hawks, who were led by 16 points from senior guard Sherwood Stamm in the win over Maryland State, now turn their attention to Rainier College after the second-seeded Majestics had little trouble in a 71-49 blasting of Midwestern Association champ Lambert College. Don Higgins, brother of former FABL pitcher Dick Higgins, and Joe Simpson each scored 17 to lead the Majestics, who reached the National semi-finals two of the past four years and were National Champions in 1940,1943 and 1944.
Great Lakes Alliance conference champion Western Iowa, ranked #2 in the nation, is the top seed in the region and the Canaries took care of business in their tournament opener, dumping Plains Athletic Association champion Oklahoma City State 53-34 behind a 19-point showing from senior forward Slim Barner - a likely first round pick in the next Federal Basketball League draft. The Canaries will meet North Carolina Tech in the second round after the 4th seeded Techsters barely survived Miami State, downing the Gulls 42-40. Mike Carter, another potential first round pick in the next FBL draft, led the way for NC Tech with 17 points.
EAST REGION
The number one team in the nation Liberty College improved to 30-0 on the season with a relatively easy time disposing of 8th seeded University of New Jersey in the opening game in the East Region. With his squad comfortably ahead, star center Luther Gordon left after just 28 minutes but still led the scoring parade with 14 points in the 69-39 rout. Next up for the Bells will be Redwood University after the WCAA school made up for losses by two of its conference brethren in the West Region to Academia Alliance outfits, as the Mammoths downed Brunswick 55-48. Advancing beyond the round of 16 will be a daunting task for Redwood but the future looks bright as a pair of freshman guards led the Mammoths in scoring against Brunswick: Danny Schirf had 15 points while Hank Adkins added 13.
The other matchup in the East will be the Deep South Conference against the Great Lakes Alliance as Alabama Baptist and Detroit City College each won as the #2 and #3 seeds. William Dixon had 13 points while Les Lightbody had 7 points and 14 boards to pace the Panthers past Brandywine 51-41 while Charlie Orlando's 17 points led the way for the Knights in their 56-42 victory over St. Blane. The victory ended two consecutive seasons of first round tournament exits for Detroit City College.
SOUTH REGION
Top seeded Noble Jones College is now 30-0 on the year after the Colonels had little trouble with San Francisco Tech in the opening round in the South Region. 61-44 was the final score with Carlton Hicks and Jim Graybeal each scoring 13 points to pace the Colonels. Annapolis Maritime, as the fifth seed, pulled off a slight upset knocking off 4th seeded Charleston Tech 67-48 in their opening round game. Billy Ambrose and David Williams each had 14 points for the Navigators.
There were some tense moments, but second-seed Whitney College held off Garden State 51-47 in a game that had the Redbirds up by 8 points midway through the second half. Sophomore Solly Morris had some key baskets down the stretch and led the Engineers with 14 points. Whitney College will now face CC Los Angeles in a battle of second seed vs third seed in the round of 16. The Coyotes shut down Western State's high scoring guard Williams Wheeler, limiting one of the top scorers in the nation to just 4 points in a 58-38 victory. Junior All-American candidate Henry Piercy scored 20 points to lead CCLA.
SHAMROCKS, DUKES GOING TO WIRE IN RACE FOR TOP SPOT
With 3 games remaining in the season for each, just one point separates the New York Shamrocks and the two-time Challenge Cup defending champion Toronto Dukes for first place and the all-important home ice advantage throughout the playoffs. The Shamrocks, who have not finished first since they led the old American Division in 1932-33, will visit Toronto to play the Dukes next Sunday -the final day of the NAHC campaign.
Each club earned 4 points in their 3 games last week to keep the situation identical to what it was entering the week. The Shamrocks visit Chicago Tuesday, host Detroit Wednesday before finishing the season in Toronto on Sunday. The Dukes are on the road for games in Montreal Wednesday and Boston on Saturday before their final meeting with the Shamrocks. Toronto will at least start the week with first line left winger Lou Galbraith on the shelf. Galbraith, who has 25 goals and 61 points playing primarily with league scoring leader Les Carlson and Quinton Pollack, injured his knee in a game last week. He is listed as day-to-day.
The order is uncertain, but New York and Toronto will finish one-two, and each will host a semi-final series. The opponents have yet to be determined but the Montreal Valiants seem in good position to finish third as they enjoy a four-point lead on Detroit with three games remaining. Detroit picked up four points last week including a big 3-2 victory in Toronto last night to tighten their grip on fourth place but the Motors, who lead Chicago by 4 points for the final playoff berth, have just two games remaining while the Packers have four to play over the last week of the season.
NAHC RESULTS FROM LAST WEEK
WEDNESDAY MARCH 15
Chicago 3 at Toronto 6: The Dukes win, coupled with New York's tie in Boston, left Toronto and the Shamrocks tied for first place. The big line led the way for Toronto with Les Carlson scoring twice including his league leading 35th of the season while his linemates Quinton Pollack and Lou Galbraith each had 3 assists on the evening.
Detroit 3 at Montreal 3: After Montreal took a 3-0 lead the visiting Motors rallied for three second period goals to claim a 3-3 tie in Montreal. Nick Tardif led the way for Detroit with two goals just over two minutes apart. The tie moves the Motors into sole possession of the fourth and final playoff spot - one point ahead of Chicago.
New York 1 at Boston 1: The Shamrocks had to settle for a single point against last place Boston despite outshooting the Bees 39-20. Simon Savard's powerplay goal in the second period gave New York the lead but Garrett Kauffeldt equaled in the third, also with the man advantage, for the Bees.
THURSDAY MARCH 16
Montreal 4 at Detroit 1: Adam Sandford scored his 29th and 30th goals of the season while Tom Brockers made 42 saves as the visiting Valiants downed Detroit 4-1. The victory moves Montreal six points ahead of Detroit and comes close to securing third place for the Vals.
SATURDAY MARCH 17
Detroit 1 at Boston 1: A second consecutive 1-1 tie for the Bees, who settle for that result at home against Detroit. Vincent Arsenault opened the scoring for the Motors late in the second period before Mickey Bedard notched the equalizer midway through the middle frame.
Montreal 1 at New York 1: Orval Cabbell's 21st goal of the season, three minutes into the third period, earned New York a single point in a 1-1 draw with Montreal. Adam Sandford had given the Vals the lead late in the opening stanza. The story of the game was the goaltending as New York's Alex Sorrell faced 41 Montreal shots while the Shamrocks fired 38 on Tom Brockers in the Valiants net.
Toronto 3 at Chicago 2: The Dukes regained first place, pulling a point ahead of New York with a win in the Windy City. Goals by Tommy Burns and Max Lavigne had helped the hosts to a 2-1 lead after forty minutes but Trevor Parker and Lou Galbraith, with his 25th marker of the season, just over a minute apart midway through the third period allowed the Dukes to claim the victory. Trevor Parker had the other Toronto goal with Quinton Pollack drawing two assists to increase his league leading total to 53 helpers.
SUNDAY MARCH 18
Chicago 1 at Boston 5: The Packers playoff hopes were dealt a serious blow with a 5-1 loss to last place Boston. Detroit upset Toronto leaving Chicago 4 points back of the Motors for the final playoff spot, but the Packers do have four games remaining while the Motors have just two left to play. Wilbur Chandler was the story on this day as the veteran Boston center scored a natural hat trick in a little over a 4 minute span to pace Boston to the victory. Jacob Gron assisted on each of Chandler's goals.
Detroit 3 at Toronto 2: A big win for the Motors playoff hopes and a tough loss for the Dukes as it knocked Toronto out of first place. Adam Vanderbilt's powerplay goal with less than four minutes remaining in the contest snapped a 2-2 tie and lifted Detroit to the victory in a game that the Motors outshot the Dukes 42-21. The win snaps a 3-game losing streak for the Motors against Toronto.
New York 5 at Montreal 1: Orval Cabbell had a hat trick and Etienne Tremblay stopped 38 of the 39 Montreal shots he faced to lead the Shamrocks to a 5-1 win over the Valiants. The victory moves New York back into top spot in the standings, a point ahead of Toronto. Ryan Kennedy had three assists for the winners with Simon Savard adding two helpers.
UPCOMING GAMES
TUESDAY MARCH 21
New York at Chicago
WEDNESDAY MARCH 22
Boston at Chicago
Detroit at New York
Toronto at Montreal
SATURDAY MARCH 25
Montreal at Chicago
Toronto at Boston
SUNDAY MARCH 26
Boston at Montreal
Detroit at Chicago
New York at Toronto
END OF REGULAR SEASON
HOCKEY NOTES
- The Windy City is paying the price for such an exceptional autumn when both the baseball Chiefs and grid Wildcats won championships. There were high hopes for the winter, but both the cage Panthers and hockey Packers have been a bitter disappointment this season. The Panthers will not make the basketball playoffs and while they are not out of the mix entirely yet, the Packers have their work cut out for them the final week of the season to try and sneak past Detroit.
- It will be very unexpected, to say the least, if both Chicago and Boston -who owned the two best records in the league a year ago- each miss the playoffs this time around.
- Archie Irwin of the Chicago Daily News notes the Packers will be getting Marty Mahoney back, but with four games left and four points to make up on Detroit, the goal deprived Chicago squad seems like their season will end earlier then they are used to.
- However, all is not lost for the Packers just yet. Bob Murphy of the Detroit Times tells us Chicago is 4 points back so if they beat Detroit and win one of their 3 other remaining games they could be tied if the Motors lose in New York on Wednesday. Not sure what the tiebreaker is but my guess is head to head and if so, the Packers advance because they went 6-2-5 against Detroit in the 13 meetings so far. Motors are far from safe.
- Finn LeBec of the Boston Globe points out that injuries caught up to Boston, especially those to Wilbur Chandler and Tommy Hart, two of their best forwards. Add to that mediocre seasons from the Bees defense, which has been a strength in the past, and you have an uneven season.
- Montreal Valiants winger Adam Sandford scored 4 times in a 3-game span last week to push the 27-year-old over the 30-goal plateau on the season. Sandford has 31 goals with 3 games left to play, trailing only league scoring leader Les Carlson of Toronto, who counts 35 goals among his league best 79 points.
- Quinton Pollack of the Toronto Dukes, who led the NAHC in points a year ago, holds a slim lead on the Shamrocks Orval Cabbell for the most assists. Pollack has 53 helpers, one more than the New York center. Carlson is third with 44.
- Not only does Toronto's Carlson led the NAHC in points but he is also the penalty minute leader with 75, holding an edge of six on Detroit's Vincent Arsenault.
- The Portland Ports are one win away from claiming their first Great Western Hockey League title in over a decade. The Ports, who had the best regular season record in the six-team coast loop, beat San Francisco in 5 games and now lead the Vancouver Bears 3 games to one in the championship series. Vancouver had upset second place Seattle in the opening round.
- The playoffs are underway in the Hockey Association of America. The top minor league saw the heavily favoured Springfield Hornets win twice on home ice to open a 2-games to none lead on the Toledo Tigers in the West Division final while in the East the Philadelphia Rascals upset the Pittsburgh Rovers 2-0 on the road to take the opener of their best-of-seven series. Freddy Hubbs, a 25-year-old New York Shamrocks fourth round pick in 1944 whose NAHC rights are still held by the Greenshirts, had the shutout after leading the HAA in wins by a goaltender during the season.
- The finals are underway in the Canadian Junior Hockey League with the top two teams from the regular season each successfully winning in the semi-finals to advance. The Saint John Saints drew first blood in the best of seven final with the St Thomas Pachyderms, claiming a 6-0 road victory Saturday behind two goals and an assist from 17-year-old draft eligible center Joe Lafleur.
- This does not look like a banner draft crop - at least according to my scouting department- but the CAHA finals will showcase some potential first round picks. It is the top two teams from the regular season in the St Thomas Pachyderms vs the Saint John Saints. Among the draft eligible players to watch appearing in the series are St John's defensemen Mathieu Harnois and Wes Reid along with a trio of St Thomas forwards in Manny Coutu, Gordie Thomas and Jimmy Pappin. Coutu was second in league scoring with 125 points in 70 games with Thomas also cracking the century mark.
DUKES REMAIN ONE POINT ASTERN IN NAHC
With three games to play in regular season Toronto is in second place, trailing New York by a single point in the battle for first place and home ice advantage throughout the playoffs. The two teams meet at Dominion Gardens Sunday to close out the regular season.
Last week the Dukes played a home and home with the Packers starting Wednesday in Ontario. The 14,472 on hand witnessed a fast paced game with the two teams trading scoring opportunities testing Gordie Broadway and Norm Hanson a total of 70 times during the 60 minutes with Toronto holding a shot advantage of 37-33 for the game. Chicago got on the board first as Tommy Brescia opened the scoring from the high slot just 3:34 into the contest only to have the Dukes tie it at 1 just over a minute later when Les Carlson scored his 34th of the year from his office just outside the crease. Frank Featherstone gave the Dukes a lead they would not give back on a three way passing play from Quinton Pollack and Lou Galbraith before the period had reached the halfway point.
The second period was scoreless until the last three minutes when defenseman Philippe Dubois made it 3-1 Toronto with Charlie Brown and Pollack, recording his 50th assist of the year, helping out. Chicago rallied quickly when Max Lavigne beat Broadway with a snap shot at to cut the Toronto lead back to one goal just 35 seconds after Dubois' tally. Down one heading into the final period, chasing a playoff spot, the Packers were forced to open up in an attempt to get the equalizer. This made them vulnerable to quick counter attack from the Dukes. Toronto scored twice on turnovers making 5-2 with just just over 9 minutes to go on goals by Maurice Charette and Carlson, who scored his second of the game and 35th of the campaign. Derek Gubb gave the Packers some hope with his 8th to make 5-3 at 13:40. That was as close as Chicago would get as Trevor Parker salted the game away at 16:35, 6-3 final.
The two teams suited up again in Lakeside Aud Saturday night. The game was the same style as the Toronto encounter, up and down the ice with slick passing, by both teams. Toronto dominated the opening period outshooting the home side 19-3 although the scoreboard showed the score tied at 1 after 20 thanks in large part to Hanson. Tommy Burns opened the scoring early when he put a shot over Broadway's shoulder at 2:02. With Brescia in the box for tripping the Dukes power play went to work with Parker knocking home a rebound off a Pollack shot.
The Packers mounted more offense in the second taking a 2-1 lead to the intermission courtesy of an end-to-end rush by Max Lavigne that he finished with a nifty deke of Broadway. Chicago held the advantage with less than 10 minutes remaining until Parker tied it with his second of the game and 19th of year. After a delay of game call on Pete Moreau which sent the crowd into frenzy, causing a long stoppage to clean the ice of the litter the fans tossed from the stands, Galbraith scored in the dying seconds of the power play. The goal caused another delay to clean the ice after debris again rained down from the stands. Chicago pulled out all the stops in an unsuccessful attempt to salvage a point as the Dukes prevailed by a 3-2 score.
Arriving back to Union Station in the wee hours of the morning the Dukes hosted the Motors Sunday. Detroit is desperately trying to hold on to playoff spot since falling off the pace after Christmas. Detroit came out fast playing their regular hard-hitting style. Helped by a steady parade of Dukes to the penalty box -a period in which Toronto took 18 of the 20 penalty minutes handed out- the Motors failed to take advantage of the opportunities but did forcing Terry Russell in the Toronto net to make 11 saves in a scoreless period. Detroit was again buzzing around the Dukes end in the second testing Russell another 18 times. They lit the goal lamp twice on markers by Dixon Butler and Moe Treadwell, who has three of his four career NAHC goals against Toronto, allowing the Motors to head into the final twenty minutes up 2-0. Late in the second period Les Carlson, who is no stranger to the rough stuff, dropped the mitts with Vincent Arsenault after taking exception to some of Arsenault's stickwork. The bout brought the fans to their feet, also seemed to inject some life into the home squad.
Early in the third Rob Painchaud pinched in to take a pass from Bobbie Sauer to beat Detroit goaltender Millard Touhey to the short side cutting the Motors lead to 2-1. Down one the Dukes tried to press on the forecheck and it paid off as they managed to tie the game when Sauer converted after Maurice Charette had poke checked a Motors defender sending the puck back to Painchaud who fed Sauer at 14:49. Less than 30 seconds later the man with the red armbands hand went up to call Chad Roy for roughing that started a chorus of boos to cascade down from the 13,918 in the seats. The Motors could smell blood in the water, they moved the puck with precision passing with Graham Comeau and Treadwell combining to find Adam Vanderbilt alone who snapped a shot past Russell. That goal brought down another chorus of boos. Toronto had a golden chance to tie the game when Arsenault was whistled for holding at 17:54 but the Dukes could not find the back of net even while going 6 skaters on 4 and the Motors held on for an important two points.
Coach Barrell: "The two games against Chicago were entertaining but a little too wide open for my liking. We have to stop freewheeling. My only comment about the Detroit game is guess who was calling the game? I had better not say anymore or I will probably lighter in the bank account. We have 3 games left; wouldn't 3 wins be nice?"
SPRING TRAINING NOTES - Pitching is always a strong suit for the Cougars, and this spring is no exception. Chicago starters have thrown 51.1 innings while allowing just 5 earned runs with 27 hits, 8 walks, and 55 strikeouts. This equates to a 0.88 ERA, 0.68 WHIP, and 6.9 K/BB through 12 games. The pen has been impressive as well, with all but two pitchers, both non-roster invitees, holding a 2.25 ERA (4 IP, ER) or lower.
- The buzz around Boston's camp is whether the club will bring top prospect Rick Masters north with them. Masters is only 19 and hasn't really produced eye opening stats at the minor league level, but Boston's manager and assistant manager feel he should be playing RF for the club this spring. Boston brass wonders if it is still too early.
- Just a minor shoulder strain but always worries me when Deuce gets hurt in spring. Barrell will need two weeks to recover. Cougars beat writer Tip Harrison of the Chicago Daily News suggests that Deuce obviously did not listen to Cincinnati manager Charley McCullough's instructions to not try to throw his hardest. Deuce, who is 32 years old and owns a 177-101 career record, has been pretty healthy most of his career but his one serious injury -which cost him the entire 1944 season- happened during spring training.
- Speaking of Barrell's, noted writer John Brinker, now retired but long-time sports editor at the New York Daily Mirror, has completed a biography of Rufus Barrell, the legendary scout and co-founder of the Omni Scouting Agency. It should be in bookstores in the near future.
- Perhaps it's the end of an era as the last of the Lightbody’s may be done. Pittsburgh has put Jim on waivers. The 32-year-old, who got his start in the big leagues with Brooklyn playing alongside his cousin's Doug and Frank Lightbody, hit just .248 in limited action for the Miners last season. Doug and his brother Frank are both retired after long careers as outfielders. Of course, the Ligthbody name may live on in pro sports as anothor cousin - Les Lightbody- is a center at Alabama Baptist and one of the top rebounders in collegiate basketball. The junior may just spend some time in the Federal Basketball League in his future.
- The Statesmen have completed their season series against the Barons and Washington did not seem to have much trouble with their geographical rivals, winning the series, four games to one. Washington won their final regular season meeting on Thursday, 84-74, and the game was tight through three quarters. The Statesmen increased their one-point lead with a 27-18 edge in the final stanza to win by 10. Charles Hooper led all scorers with 26 points, but even more impressive was his six blocked shots. Washington had 15 blocks as a team compared to only four for Baltimore. Washington does need to work on their foul shooting, only hitting 58% of their free throws against Baltimore and sitting 10th in the league at 65%.
- The last spot in the three-team divisional playoff field in the Eastern Division could be a fight to the finish. With somewhere between 14 and 16 games remaining, Washington leads Baltimore and New York by five games and Brooklyn by six games. Rochester sits 5-1/2 games behind fourth-place Brooklyn with 15 games left and while the Rockets are 28-25 and have the stingiest defense in the league in allowing a league-low 78.0 points per game, Rochester has lost eight of 12 and are fading away. The schedule-makers are geniuses once again. Look at Baltimore's final games on their schedule. Six of their last eight games are against either New York (2 games) or Brooklyn (4 games).
- In the East, Buffalo and Cleveland are in a virtual tie, nine games behind Detroit. Toronto is firmly ensconced in second place, four games away from the top. It will likely come down to the Brawlers and the Crushers for the final spot, with Cincinnati and Pittsburgh 6-1/2 games behind a playoff spot with 15 games left on the schedule. Buffalo (28-24) has four games in hand on Cleveland (30-26), though Buffalo has more matchups against the likely division winner, the Mustangs. Buffalo has three straight games against Detroit in early April and Cleveland only faces the Mustangs once. Buffalo and Cleveland will meet twice in those final games -- including this Wednesday in Cleveland -- to help sort out which teams will play for the title.
- The Toronto Falcons are almost assured of a playoff spot with a recent 15-5 run, including an astounding 8-2 road trip in late January and early February, as well as their current streak of four wins in a row. But the Falcons will likely not jockey for better position, as Toronto is four games behind Detroit and five games ahead of Buffalo and Cleveland. The Falcons have only one meeting left before the playoffs against Detroit and it is this Thursday at the Palladium. Toronto has done their part, winning four of the six matchups between the teams so far this season, and the games have been very entertaining with half of the games being decided by three points or less.
EDMONDS AND BOGGS EYE GLORY IN MIDDLEWEIGHT BATTLE FOR THE AGES
In the hallowed halls of pugilism, a familiar heartbeat is set to return as John Edmonds and Bill Boggs step into the squared circle at Bigsby Garden, vying for the coveted World Middleweight Crown. A title left vacant since the tragic fall of Edouard Desmarais in an October plane catastrophe.
Edmonds, the gritty warrior from Muncie, Indiana, brings a storied past to the canvas. His thunderous clashes with Frank Melanson, where he briefly grasped the world title, are etched in boxing lore. The 31-year-old, with a record standing tall at 30-3, has charted a triumphant path back to the spotlight after a Chicago night in 1947 relinquished his grip on the crown. His fists, now seasoned with victories, yearn to etch a new chapter in the middleweight saga.
Across from him stands the formidable Bill Boggs, the brash Brooklynite on the cusp of his 25th birthday. A powerhouse adorned with muscle and backed by an unyielding confidence. Boggs, a veteran of the Garden's famed canvas, steps onto a grander stage, the spotlight gleaming on a chance to clinch the world title. With a professional tally of 20-2-1, his unanimous decision over Bobby Hinkle echoes his prowess, yet a draw against the seasoned Adrian Petrie serves as a reminder of the unpredictable dance that is boxing.
Edmonds, with a whisper of experience in his corner, assumes the mantle of a slight favorite. However, this impending showdown, a fistic tribute to Desmarais' legacy, pulses with the potential for pugilistic excellence. The Garden, a silent witness to tales etched in leather and sweat, prepares for a night where gloves will pen a new chapter, and the memory of a fallen champion will linger in the air.
As the bell tolls, it will herald not just a contest of brawn but a continuation of a legacy—a lineage of middleweights, each leaving their mark on the canvas, and in the heart of a sport that thrives on the rhythm of punches and the echoes of champions past.
RECENT KEY RESULTS- Joey Tierney improved to a perfect 18-0 with a short night in Los Angeles as the 22-year-old Detroit native, making his first foray to the west coast, made short work of Maurice Woods last Monday, knocking the Oakland native out in the fourth round of their bout. Tierney counts 11 knockouts among his 18 victories since turning pro six months before his twentieth birthday.
UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS- Mar 24- Bigsby Garden, New York - John Edmonds will face Bill Boggs for the world middleweight title, made vacant by the tragic death of former champ Edouard Desmarais in an October plane crash.
- Mar 25 - San Francisco, Ca. - unbeaten 22-year-old heavyweight Brad Harris (16-0-1) faces his toughest test to date with a 10-rounder against veteran Matt Price (37-10-4)
- Apr 6- Buffalo, NY- former welterweight contender Carl Taylor (28-8-2) meets Bob Thomas (22-8-1)
- Apr 8- Lake Erie Arena, Cleveland- World Welterweight champion Mac Erickson (21-0) defends his title in a rematch with Mark Westlake (27-5-1)
- Apr 14- Ottawa, ON - Canadian middleweight Kevin Rawlings (23-5) faces Willie Binion (19-11-1)
- Apr 17 - Bigsby Garden, NY- welterweight Artie Neal (26-8-1) faces Harry Larkin (20-5)
- Apr 20- Cincinnati, OH- George Gibbs (26-5), Colorado born welterweight, meets Scott Sorensen (27-12-3)
- Apr 25 - Oakland, CA- welterweight Dale Roy (35-7-1) squares off with Arthur Shaw (21-11-2)
- Apr 25- Washington DC- Veteran Philadelphia heavyweight Scott 'The Chef' Baker (22-4-2) vs Lyle Wilson (27-5)
- Apr 26- Youngstown, OH- Middleweight Tommy Campbell (22-4-2) vs Andy Jackson (24-5-2)
- Apr 27- Providence, RI- Heavyweight Roy Crawford, 'The Boston Bomber' (31-5) fights Allen Bailey (41-7-2)
- Apr 30- Brooklyn, NY - Heavyweights Cannon Cooper (30-4-1) and Dan Miller (41-12-1) meet at Flatbush Gardens.
The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 3/19/1950
- Secretary of State Acheson challenged Russia to demonstrate her desire for peace by accepting a new seven-point program to free the world from "destructive tensions and anxieties." Boiled down, Acheson is calling for an end to Russia's aggressive diplomacy, for new moves to conclude peace treaties and to find some solution to the problem of atomic controls.
- At public hearings on civilian defense the director of the Atomic Energy Commission's division of biology and medicine said that survivors of an atomic explosion can "expect a reasonably normal life thereafter."
- Senator McCarthy charged by name widely known Far East expert and wartime advisor Owen Lattimore as well as two State Department officials with having "pro-Communist records" that make them bad security risks. A day later he named four more including two American representatives to the United Nations.
- The Senate Commerce Committee is set to study Hollywood filmland morals. The Chairman of the group told a reporter that the motion picture industry is going to be called on the carpet to explain why the morals of some of its stars aren't better.
- Poland withdrew from the World Bank with an angry charge that the 48-nation institution is under the thumb of the United States and "its imperialist policy." It also pulled out of the International Monetary Fund.
- President Truman gave assurances that "no one can be harmed in any way" by answering questions in the forthcoming national census. The President said the data will not be used for taxation or any other purpose beside its intended one of securing general statistical information regarding the population, its characteristics and homes.