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Tiger Fan · 06-12-2024, 01:19 PM

APRIL 30, 1951

BEES WIN THREE STRAIGHT - ONE AWAY FROM CUP CELEBRATION

The Montreal Valiants went from seemingly in complete control and well on their way to a second straight Challenge Cup championship to suddenly being on the brink of elimination, trailing the Boston Bees 3 games to two and faced with a must-win game tomorrow night at Boston's Denny Arena.

The Vals opened the series with back to back wins on Montreal Arena ice before the Bees battled back with a pair of 3-2 victories, both in overtime on home ice. With the series knotted heading back to Montreal for last night's pivotal fifth game, the Bees rode a standout performance from goaltender Oscar James to a 2-0 victory and are now with one game of hoisting the Cup for the first time in four years and the 8th time overall. Only the Toronto Dukes, who won their 8th Cup two years ago, have won more. Montreal needs a win on the road tomorrow night and then a victory in the seventh game to claim a second straight tile and the fifth in franchise history.

Finn LeBec of the Boston Globe breaks down the last three games:

Robert Walker scored two goals, including the game winner with 32 seconds left in the first overtime to win Game 3, 3-2. Boston had the extra man after Clarence Skinner interfered with Boston goaltender Oscar James. The interference call canceled a Montreal man-advantage. In all, four minor penalties were called in overtime, including two consecutive calls against Montreal, which gave Boston a 5-on-3 just 4:45 into the extra period. Boston outshot Montreal, 17-7, in overtime, as the Bees peppered Montreal's Tom Brockers with 49 shots in all.

Game 4 was also settled after regulation, as noted overtime hero Jacob Gron scored his seventh goal of the playoffs at 9:29 of overtime to give Boston the 3-2 win. Boston went up 2-0 after the first 20 minutes in Game 3 and Montreal fought back to tie in regulation. This time, the script was flipped, as Montreal took a 2-0 first-period lead, only to see Boston score in the second and get even in the third. Oscar James made 25 saves in the win, as neither team broke through on the power play despite nine total chances. Gron became famous for his clutch scoring in the 1948-49 playoffs when he scored four overtime goals including all three overtime winners in a best-of-five semi-final series with Detroit that year.

Oscar James was outplayed in Game 3. James played his opposite number, Montreal's Tom Brockers, even in Game 4. In Game 5, it was James's turn to shine. James pitched a 34-save shutout in the fifth game to give Boston a 3-2 lead in the series. Wilbur Chandler scored the eventual game-winner in the second period, while Willis Beane's empty-net goal gave the Bees some insurance. Beane tussled with Montreal resident policeman Ed McRae in the first period to set the tone and he was rewarded with potting one from the opposite end of the ice.

The scene will shift back to Denny Arena for Game 6 on Tuesday night in an elimination game. After losing the first two in Montreal, Boston has a chance to close out this series at home. However, Montreal has shown time and time again with their lethal offense how they could easily take this one and go home to win a winner-take-all Game 7.

NAHC NAMES ITS ALL-STARS

The New York Shamrocks may have stumbled in the playoffs, but the team with the best regular season record in the NAHC saw four of its players selected to the league's post season all-star teams. The results were made public last week with the Shamrocks having two representatives on each of the first and second team squads.

New York led the way with league scoring leader Orval Cabbell and his right winger Simon Savard being named to the first team while Greenshirts blueliners Jerry Finch and Ryan Kennedy were second team selections. Both Cabbell and Savard were second team selections a year ago while Kennedy was on the first team for the 1949-50 season. Cabbell, who set a new single season NAHC point scoring record with 82, is expected to follow up his all-star selection with his second straight McDaniels Trophy as league MVP. The McDaniels, and the loops three other major award winners will be revealed next week.

Rounding out the first team are a pair of Montreal Valiants in veteran goaltender Tom Brockers and defenseman Shel Herron. The 35-year-old Brockers is an all-star for the first time since the post-season teams debuted five years ago but he does own four Juneau Trophy's as the top goaltender in the NAHC. Herron was a first team selection in 1946-47 and named to the second team a year ago. Joining the Vals and Shamrocks on the first team are Detroit defenseman Tyson Beddoes, a first time all-star, and Toronto winger Lou Galbraith, a second team selection each of the two previous seasons.

Along with New York defensemen Finch and Kennedy, the second team features Detroit goaltender Millard Touhey and a forward line consisting of Boston's Wilbur Chandler between Adam Sandford of Montreal and Toronto's Les Carlson. Carlson was a first teamer each of the previous two seasons while Sandford also made the first team last year.

PIONEERS AND SAILORS HAVE FANS CHECKING CALENDAR

In a flashback to the 1947 and 1948 seasons the St. Louis Pioneers and Philadelphia Sailors are in a spot few expected they would be this season, leading their respective associations. Both St Louis and Philadelphia ended long pennant droughts with surprising wins in 1947 and just for good measure each followed it up with another flag the following season. The Pioneers triumphed in the World Championship Series on both occasions in a speed to match the surprising rise for each, the both crashed back to the bottom with each finishing no better than seventh each of the past two seasons.

It is early so odds are long they will stay there but, despite being picked by many to finish deep in the second division again, each is off to a strong start. The Pioneers, with a new General Manager and a new third baseman in Cleveland cast-off Jim Adams Jr., find themselves at 9-5 two weeks into the season, good for a half game lead in the Federal Association on the equally surprising Pittsburgh Miners.

The Sailors hold a half game lead on the Chicago Cougars for top spot in the Continental Association. This despite the fact that the Sailors cast adrift their two most recognizable players in Ed Reyes and Marion Boismenu - a duo that has combined to win the last six Continental Association batting title. Age may be catching up to each as Reyes is 38 and Boismenu just a year younger but the Toronto Wolves -and much of the rest of FABL- felt there was still value in each. After both were waived by the Sailors just prior to opening day, a wild waiver claim frenzy commenced, ending with the Wolves, who finished with the worst record in the Continental Association and as such have priority, landing both of them.

It is highly unlikely we will see a third Pioneers-Sailors World Championship Series in the last five years but for the moment at least, the two clubs have turned back the clock and lead the way.

TALES FROM THE LAIR

Toronto Acquires Two Vets Off Waiver Wire -In a move that many find interesting, to say the least, Wolves management claimed two aging veterans off the waiver wire from the Philadelphia Sailors. Joining Toronto in the midst of their 16 game, 17 day road trip are 38 year old 1B Ed Reyes and Marion Boismenu, 37, a Quebec native who was Whitney Award recipient in 1944. For a team that has stated their desire to turn the page to get younger the move to add 2 players in the twilight of their career's seems counter to that movement, not to mention the $81,610 in added payroll burden for 1951. Brett gets the feeling that these are both short term measures for the Wolves.

While both are proven big league bats, Boismenu hit .340 last year to lead the CA while Reyes won the CA batting title every year from 1945-49. Their value in the clubhouse may be of more value to Fred Barrell. Both are proven winners, they will help in speeding the maturation of the younger Wolves. While neither will be inserted into the starting lineup immediately both can be game changing bats late in close games. Reyes' LHB will probably replace Frank Brunch Jr. along with spelling McCormick at firsf. Boismenu is a handy hitter from the right side along with a possible platoon partner for Joe DeMott.

Fred Barrell said after learning the two would join the team in Brooklyn "Overall we are a better team. Sure we added two players that are approaching the end of their careers but both still possess dangerous bats. The intangibles they will add in the clubhouse are very valuable to our younger players, Both play, prepare for every game the right way they will lead by example along with Hancock and McCormick, Owner Millard had no problem with the added payroll seeing the value in both players, Fans will see a better team when we return home mid-month."

One the field the team went 3-3 for the week to leave April with a 5-5 record. After defeating the Foresters twice at home, the Sailors crushed the Wolves 9-3 before the team headed out on the road until the middle of May. The trip began on a down note by losing the first two in Cincinnati, including a 11-0 shellacking, the team took the Sunday game at Tice Memorial 5-4 with a Kirby Copeland led rally in top of ninth inning.

The bullpen is still sorting itself out leading many fans to wonder why if the teams was going to make waiver claims why wasn't it a shutdown reliever? John Wells' bat will be missed for the next two weeks after starting the season .323/..323/.355 6 RBI he hurt his back Saturday in Cincinnati. Harry Finney is also nursing a minor back ailment. Barrell feels this early season road trip will be a good test for the Wolves.

Pat Petty went 5-for-16 in his Detroit debut last week including a 3-hit game in a 3-2 loss to St Louis in the opener of a twin bill. Meanwhile the Brooklyn Kings opted to delay activating Roy Schaub, who was acquired for Petty in last week's big trade. It is expected Schaub will make his Brooklyn debut this week.
A sign of the times in Brooklyn, the home opener against Montreal drew just 12,242 fans and attendance fell to 8,017 for the next game as the lame duck club commence its final season in Brooklyn before moving to Kansas City next year. Kings GM Martin stated when asked about the attendance "There is not much to say. The fans are clearly angry and I get that. We will do everything we can to go out with a bang, for those that hang with us."
Not a good sim to be a young SS in the CA. Brooklyn's Billy Bryant is out two months and Toronto loses John Wells , but at least that one is just 2 weeks.
A 1-6 start has the Washington Eagles feeling pretty good about splitting their six games last week. The Eagles were outscored 54-28 the opening week but finished with a positive run differential this time around. One positive for the Eagles is that Rats McGonigle is finally healthy and ready to make his season debut. The 32-year-old five time all-star smacked a career best 31 homers a year ago.
Artie Mortimer of the New York Daily Mirror notes that the Stars are off to a slow start in spite of some booming offense. Bill Barrett is crushing it but can't do it all alone. Hopefully the pitching wakes up and the Stars can keep it under 4 runs a game more often than not.
Maybe the Chicago Cougars have found a new lead-off man. Tip Harrison of the Chicago Daily News tells us that despite being 37 and starting the season with 54 steals, Leo Mitchell is on pace to swipe 59 bags in 130 games. He stole 5 bases in 135 games last season, the same amount he's got in 11 games this year, and is on pace to shatter the 9 steals he had at age 25 in 1938.
On the farm the Dynamos are thrilled with Beau McClellan's AAA debut went well as the 18-year-old tossed a complete game six hitter to beat Les Ledbetter and the Buffalo Nickels 7-1. And Fred Washington followed that up with a 6-hit shutout the next night in a 5-0 Newark win over Toronto's top farm club.

FALCONS CLOSE IN ON ANOTHER FLIGHT TO FBL FINALS

The Toronto Falcons remain unbeaten in playoff action after they shocked the West Division winning Rochester Rockets 71-58 on the Rockets home court in the opener of their best-of-seven semi-final series. The win comes after the Falcons dominated their opening round series with Detroit, sweeping the Mustangs three straight by an average margin of 19 points per game including a 71-58 road win in the Motor City to wrap up the series.

The Falcons, despite numerous injuries in the playoffs a year ago, pushed the Washington Statesmen all the way to a seventh game in the league finals before falling just short. This time around the Falcons are, for the most part, healthy and looking to be at the top of their game.

Rochester might have finished three games ahead of Toronto for first place in the West Division but last night in New York state it was the Canadian entry that looked to be the much better squad. Lon Porter, who leads all playoff scorers, continued the offensive outburst he began in the opening round against Detroit by scoring 27 points in the 71-58 victory. Porter also led the way on the boards with a game high 17 rebounds. A stifling Toronto defense hounded Rocket shooters all night as one of the best shooting teams in the regular season was successful on just 24% of its shot attempts. The series continues tonight with game two at the Rochester Auditorium before it shifts to Toronto.

In the opening round of the East Division playoff the Boston Centurions got hot when the New York Knights went cold and the Centurions advanced to the East Final against Washington. Washington, slowed the visitors from Boston with a win in Game 1 by 10 points as the Statesmen clamped down in the fourth quarter to pull away, 85-75. Morgan Melcher, the star of the series for the Centurions against New York, had 18 points, which was off his 26.5 point scoring average in the Divisional Semifinals, and only made seven of 33 shots from the field. Ivan Sisco led the Statesmen with 17 points and 22 rebounds, but his 7-for-30 shooting showed plenty of room for improvement as well. Sisco took twice as many shots as anyone else on the team. Rookie Brian Threadgill grabbed 22 boards for the Centurions and garnered Player of the Game honors in Game 1 despite only scoring six points. Game two is set for this evening at D.C.'s National Auditorium.

OSA RELEASES FINAL PRO CAGE PROSPECT LIST

Carolina Poly forward Mel Turcotte remains the top candidate to be selected first overall in the summer Federal Basketball League draft. According to OSA's basketball division, the tall forward from New York City is the best collegiate senior available for pro teams to select. A four year starter who missed much of his sophomore season with an injury, Turcotte averaged 11.2 points per game and 8.2 rebounds per contest in 32 outings as the Cardinals won the South Atlantic Conference title and advanced to the quarterfinals of the AIAA tournament before falling to Brunswick. Turcotte was named a third team All-American this year.

Number two on the scouting service list is Darryl Baugher, the second team All-American center who helped lead Western Iowa to the number one ranking in the regular season and within a game of winning the national title. The Chicago native was the national freshman of the year in 1948-49. Rounding out the top five are Frankford State guard Rod Bookman, a New Jersey native who was a third team All-American as a junior and a second team selection this past season. At fourth the scouting service has Maryland State center Dumpy Kraus, who scored 12.4 ppg and added 7.0 rebounds per game for the Bengals. Kraus hails from Lexington, VA. Finally the top five is completed by Detroit City College forward Chris Corbett, a Los Angeles native who paced the Knights with 11.1 ppg. Chris Rogerson, a center from Pierpont of the Academia Alliance who was named winner of the Art Barrette Trophy as the top collegiate player for 1950-51, is listed at number seven on the scouting service list.

RECENT KEY RESULTS

California heavyweight Rodney Bruce needed just a minute and a half to spoil Ken Yetman's western trip as Bruce knocked out the Canadian early in the opening round of their fight in Oakland that was slated for ten. Bruce landed a thunderous shot under Yetman's ribcage that saw the Toronto born fighter crumble like stale bread.
Friday night in Buffalo promising young middleweight Mark McCoy won for the 24th time as a professional, scoring a unanimous decision over ring veteran Nathan Sears. The Kansas City native, who turns 22 next month, has looked quite impressive in his recent outings and seems to have recovered well from a loss to Bill Boggs late last summer that, at least temporarily, slowed his progress. There is some talk that McCoy, who was ranked the #5 contender in this publication's latest middleweight rankings, may get a title shot in the very near future. Sears, who is now 36 years of age, had a title shot of his own long ago. That was back in 1941 when he lost to then champion Archie Rees. Sears 34-15-3 in a career that began when he was just 17 years of age.

UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS

May 10- Bigsby Garden, New York- former middleweight champion Adrian Petrie (21-3-3) vs Jim Ward (27-3)
May 17- Miami, Fl- veteran middleweight Bob Hinkle (29-10-1) faces Jersey Jerry Miller (19-15)
May 17-Los Angeles, CA- veteran welterweight Willis May (25-8-2) vs Michael Holloway (22-12-3)
May 18- Keystone Arena, Philadelphia: former welterweight champion Mac Erickson (22-4) vs Danny Julian (29-3-2)
May 24- St Paul, Mn- former middleweight contender Nick Harris (32-8-1) vs Andy Jackson (25-7-3)
May 25 - Lakeside Auditorium, Chicago - HW contender Cannon Cooper (33-6-1) vs John Howe (41-17-1)

The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 4/29/1951

The week in Korea started with a major Red offensive which raged along much of the Korean front and pushed United Nations troops back as much as 12 miles. The Red push did manage to drown out much of the ongoing row in Congress over Gen. MacArthur's dismissal.
Gen. Ridgeway, new commander in Korea, says that the current Red offensive may prove to be the decisive battle of the Korean war.
Late in the week the United Nations troops on the western-central Korean front had withdrawn below the 38th Parallel as Red forces drive towards Seoul.
Due to surging enlistments, the Army plans to only draft 20,000 men in June.
President Truman said last week that Gen. MacArthur is free to say what he pleases, adding that while he still has strings on the ousted Far East commander, the President does not intend to pull them.
Winston Churchill has called off a planned speech in the United States for next month, in a move that is seen as wanting to steer clear of the American political row over Gen. MacArthur.
East Germany's Communist police army plans to send officers to Korea for battlefront training with the Chinese Reds.

06-12-2024, 01:19 PM	#962
Tiger Fan Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Ontario Canada Posts: 9,862	April 30, 1951 APRIL 30, 1951 BEES WIN THREE STRAIGHT - ONE AWAY FROM CUP CELEBRATION The Montreal Valiants went from seemingly in complete control and well on their way to a second straight Challenge Cup championship to suddenly being on the brink of elimination, trailing the Boston Bees 3 games to two and faced with a must-win game tomorrow night at Boston's Denny Arena. The Vals opened the series with back to back wins on Montreal Arena ice before the Bees battled back with a pair of 3-2 victories, both in overtime on home ice. With the series knotted heading back to Montreal for last night's pivotal fifth game, the Bees rode a standout performance from goaltender Oscar James to a 2-0 victory and are now with one game of hoisting the Cup for the first time in four years and the 8th time overall. Only the Toronto Dukes, who won their 8th Cup two years ago, have won more. Montreal needs a win on the road tomorrow night and then a victory in the seventh game to claim a second straight tile and the fifth in franchise history. Finn LeBec of the Boston Globe breaks down the last three games: Robert Walker scored two goals, including the game winner with 32 seconds left in the first overtime to win Game 3, 3-2. Boston had the extra man after Clarence Skinner interfered with Boston goaltender Oscar James. The interference call canceled a Montreal man-advantage. In all, four minor penalties were called in overtime, including two consecutive calls against Montreal, which gave Boston a 5-on-3 just 4:45 into the extra period. Boston outshot Montreal, 17-7, in overtime, as the Bees peppered Montreal's Tom Brockers with 49 shots in all. Game 4 was also settled after regulation, as noted overtime hero Jacob Gron scored his seventh goal of the playoffs at 9:29 of overtime to give Boston the 3-2 win. Boston went up 2-0 after the first 20 minutes in Game 3 and Montreal fought back to tie in regulation. This time, the script was flipped, as Montreal took a 2-0 first-period lead, only to see Boston score in the second and get even in the third. Oscar James made 25 saves in the win, as neither team broke through on the power play despite nine total chances. Gron became famous for his clutch scoring in the 1948-49 playoffs when he scored four overtime goals including all three overtime winners in a best-of-five semi-final series with Detroit that year. Oscar James was outplayed in Game 3. James played his opposite number, Montreal's Tom Brockers, even in Game 4. In Game 5, it was James's turn to shine. James pitched a 34-save shutout in the fifth game to give Boston a 3-2 lead in the series. Wilbur Chandler scored the eventual game-winner in the second period, while Willis Beane's empty-net goal gave the Bees some insurance. Beane tussled with Montreal resident policeman Ed McRae in the first period to set the tone and he was rewarded with potting one from the opposite end of the ice. The scene will shift back to Denny Arena for Game 6 on Tuesday night in an elimination game. After losing the first two in Montreal, Boston has a chance to close out this series at home. However, Montreal has shown time and time again with their lethal offense how they could easily take this one and go home to win a winner-take-all Game 7. NAHC NAMES ITS ALL-STARS The New York Shamrocks may have stumbled in the playoffs, but the team with the best regular season record in the NAHC saw four of its players selected to the league's post season all-star teams. The results were made public last week with the Shamrocks having two representatives on each of the first and second team squads. New York led the way with league scoring leader Orval Cabbell and his right winger Simon Savard being named to the first team while Greenshirts blueliners Jerry Finch and Ryan Kennedy were second team selections. Both Cabbell and Savard were second team selections a year ago while Kennedy was on the first team for the 1949-50 season. Cabbell, who set a new single season NAHC point scoring record with 82, is expected to follow up his all-star selection with his second straight McDaniels Trophy as league MVP. The McDaniels, and the loops three other major award winners will be revealed next week. Rounding out the first team are a pair of Montreal Valiants in veteran goaltender Tom Brockers and defenseman Shel Herron. The 35-year-old Brockers is an all-star for the first time since the post-season teams debuted five years ago but he does own four Juneau Trophy's as the top goaltender in the NAHC. Herron was a first team selection in 1946-47 and named to the second team a year ago. Joining the Vals and Shamrocks on the first team are Detroit defenseman Tyson Beddoes, a first time all-star, and Toronto winger Lou Galbraith, a second team selection each of the two previous seasons. Along with New York defensemen Finch and Kennedy, the second team features Detroit goaltender Millard Touhey and a forward line consisting of Boston's Wilbur Chandler between Adam Sandford of Montreal and Toronto's Les Carlson. Carlson was a first teamer each of the previous two seasons while Sandford also made the first team last year. PIONEERS AND SAILORS HAVE FANS CHECKING CALENDAR In a flashback to the 1947 and 1948 seasons the St. Louis Pioneers and Philadelphia Sailors are in a spot few expected they would be this season, leading their respective associations. Both St Louis and Philadelphia ended long pennant droughts with surprising wins in 1947 and just for good measure each followed it up with another flag the following season. The Pioneers triumphed in the World Championship Series on both occasions in a speed to match the surprising rise for each, the both crashed back to the bottom with each finishing no better than seventh each of the past two seasons. It is early so odds are long they will stay there but, despite being picked by many to finish deep in the second division again, each is off to a strong start. The Pioneers, with a new General Manager and a new third baseman in Cleveland cast-off Jim Adams Jr., find themselves at 9-5 two weeks into the season, good for a half game lead in the Federal Association on the equally surprising Pittsburgh Miners. The Sailors hold a half game lead on the Chicago Cougars for top spot in the Continental Association. This despite the fact that the Sailors cast adrift their two most recognizable players in Ed Reyes and Marion Boismenu - a duo that has combined to win the last six Continental Association batting title. Age may be catching up to each as Reyes is 38 and Boismenu just a year younger but the Toronto Wolves -and much of the rest of FABL- felt there was still value in each. After both were waived by the Sailors just prior to opening day, a wild waiver claim frenzy commenced, ending with the Wolves, who finished with the worst record in the Continental Association and as such have priority, landing both of them. It is highly unlikely we will see a third Pioneers-Sailors World Championship Series in the last five years but for the moment at least, the two clubs have turned back the clock and lead the way. TALES FROM THE LAIR Toronto Acquires Two Vets Off Waiver Wire -In a move that many find interesting, to say the least, Wolves management claimed two aging veterans off the waiver wire from the Philadelphia Sailors. Joining Toronto in the midst of their 16 game, 17 day road trip are 38 year old 1B Ed Reyes and Marion Boismenu, 37, a Quebec native who was Whitney Award recipient in 1944. For a team that has stated their desire to turn the page to get younger the move to add 2 players in the twilight of their career's seems counter to that movement, not to mention the $81,610 in added payroll burden for 1951. Brett gets the feeling that these are both short term measures for the Wolves. While both are proven big league bats, Boismenu hit .340 last year to lead the CA while Reyes won the CA batting title every year from 1945-49. Their value in the clubhouse may be of more value to Fred Barrell. Both are proven winners, they will help in speeding the maturation of the younger Wolves. While neither will be inserted into the starting lineup immediately both can be game changing bats late in close games. Reyes' LHB will probably replace Frank Brunch Jr. along with spelling McCormick at firsf. Boismenu is a handy hitter from the right side along with a possible platoon partner for Joe DeMott. Fred Barrell said after learning the two would join the team in Brooklyn "Overall we are a better team. Sure we added two players that are approaching the end of their careers but both still possess dangerous bats. The intangibles they will add in the clubhouse are very valuable to our younger players, Both play, prepare for every game the right way they will lead by example along with Hancock and McCormick, Owner Millard had no problem with the added payroll seeing the value in both players, Fans will see a better team when we return home mid-month." One the field the team went 3-3 for the week to leave April with a 5-5 record. After defeating the Foresters twice at home, the Sailors crushed the Wolves 9-3 before the team headed out on the road until the middle of May. The trip began on a down note by losing the first two in Cincinnati, including a 11-0 shellacking, the team took the Sunday game at Tice Memorial 5-4 with a Kirby Copeland led rally in top of ninth inning. The bullpen is still sorting itself out leading many fans to wonder why if the teams was going to make waiver claims why wasn't it a shutdown reliever? John Wells' bat will be missed for the next two weeks after starting the season .323/..323/.355 6 RBI he hurt his back Saturday in Cincinnati. Harry Finney is also nursing a minor back ailment. Barrell feels this early season road trip will be a good test for the Wolves. Pat Petty went 5-for-16 in his Detroit debut last week including a 3-hit game in a 3-2 loss to St Louis in the opener of a twin bill. Meanwhile the Brooklyn Kings opted to delay activating Roy Schaub, who was acquired for Petty in last week's big trade. It is expected Schaub will make his Brooklyn debut this week. A sign of the times in Brooklyn, the home opener against Montreal drew just 12,242 fans and attendance fell to 8,017 for the next game as the lame duck club commence its final season in Brooklyn before moving to Kansas City next year. Kings GM Martin stated when asked about the attendance "There is not much to say. The fans are clearly angry and I get that. We will do everything we can to go out with a bang, for those that hang with us." Not a good sim to be a young SS in the CA. Brooklyn's Billy Bryant is out two months and Toronto loses John Wells , but at least that one is just 2 weeks. A 1-6 start has the Washington Eagles feeling pretty good about splitting their six games last week. The Eagles were outscored 54-28 the opening week but finished with a positive run differential this time around. One positive for the Eagles is that Rats McGonigle is finally healthy and ready to make his season debut. The 32-year-old five time all-star smacked a career best 31 homers a year ago. Artie Mortimer of the New York Daily Mirror notes that the Stars are off to a slow start in spite of some booming offense. Bill Barrett is crushing it but can't do it all alone. Hopefully the pitching wakes up and the Stars can keep it under 4 runs a game more often than not. Maybe the Chicago Cougars have found a new lead-off man. Tip Harrison of the Chicago Daily News tells us that despite being 37 and starting the season with 54 steals, Leo Mitchell is on pace to swipe 59 bags in 130 games. He stole 5 bases in 135 games last season, the same amount he's got in 11 games this year, and is on pace to shatter the 9 steals he had at age 25 in 1938. On the farm the Dynamos are thrilled with Beau McClellan's AAA debut went well as the 18-year-old tossed a complete game six hitter to beat Les Ledbetter and the Buffalo Nickels 7-1. And Fred Washington followed that up with a 6-hit shutout the next night in a 5-0 Newark win over Toronto's top farm club. FALCONS CLOSE IN ON ANOTHER FLIGHT TO FBL FINALS The Toronto Falcons remain unbeaten in playoff action after they shocked the West Division winning Rochester Rockets 71-58 on the Rockets home court in the opener of their best-of-seven semi-final series. The win comes after the Falcons dominated their opening round series with Detroit, sweeping the Mustangs three straight by an average margin of 19 points per game including a 71-58 road win in the Motor City to wrap up the series. The Falcons, despite numerous injuries in the playoffs a year ago, pushed the Washington Statesmen all the way to a seventh game in the league finals before falling just short. This time around the Falcons are, for the most part, healthy and looking to be at the top of their game. Rochester might have finished three games ahead of Toronto for first place in the West Division but last night in New York state it was the Canadian entry that looked to be the much better squad. Lon Porter, who leads all playoff scorers, continued the offensive outburst he began in the opening round against Detroit by scoring 27 points in the 71-58 victory. Porter also led the way on the boards with a game high 17 rebounds. A stifling Toronto defense hounded Rocket shooters all night as one of the best shooting teams in the regular season was successful on just 24% of its shot attempts. The series continues tonight with game two at the Rochester Auditorium before it shifts to Toronto. In the opening round of the East Division playoff the Boston Centurions got hot when the New York Knights went cold and the Centurions advanced to the East Final against Washington. Washington, slowed the visitors from Boston with a win in Game 1 by 10 points as the Statesmen clamped down in the fourth quarter to pull away, 85-75. Morgan Melcher, the star of the series for the Centurions against New York, had 18 points, which was off his 26.5 point scoring average in the Divisional Semifinals, and only made seven of 33 shots from the field. Ivan Sisco led the Statesmen with 17 points and 22 rebounds, but his 7-for-30 shooting showed plenty of room for improvement as well. Sisco took twice as many shots as anyone else on the team. Rookie Brian Threadgill grabbed 22 boards for the Centurions and garnered Player of the Game honors in Game 1 despite only scoring six points. Game two is set for this evening at D.C.'s National Auditorium. OSA RELEASES FINAL PRO CAGE PROSPECT LIST Carolina Poly forward Mel Turcotte remains the top candidate to be selected first overall in the summer Federal Basketball League draft. According to OSA's basketball division, the tall forward from New York City is the best collegiate senior available for pro teams to select. A four year starter who missed much of his sophomore season with an injury, Turcotte averaged 11.2 points per game and 8.2 rebounds per contest in 32 outings as the Cardinals won the South Atlantic Conference title and advanced to the quarterfinals of the AIAA tournament before falling to Brunswick. Turcotte was named a third team All-American this year. Number two on the scouting service list is Darryl Baugher, the second team All-American center who helped lead Western Iowa to the number one ranking in the regular season and within a game of winning the national title. The Chicago native was the national freshman of the year in 1948-49. Rounding out the top five are Frankford State guard Rod Bookman, a New Jersey native who was a third team All-American as a junior and a second team selection this past season. At fourth the scouting service has Maryland State center Dumpy Kraus, who scored 12.4 ppg and added 7.0 rebounds per game for the Bengals. Kraus hails from Lexington, VA. Finally the top five is completed by Detroit City College forward Chris Corbett, a Los Angeles native who paced the Knights with 11.1 ppg. Chris Rogerson, a center from Pierpont of the Academia Alliance who was named winner of the Art Barrette Trophy as the top collegiate player for 1950-51, is listed at number seven on the scouting service list. RECENT KEY RESULTS California heavyweight Rodney Bruce needed just a minute and a half to spoil Ken Yetman's western trip as Bruce knocked out the Canadian early in the opening round of their fight in Oakland that was slated for ten. Bruce landed a thunderous shot under Yetman's ribcage that saw the Toronto born fighter crumble like stale bread. Friday night in Buffalo promising young middleweight Mark McCoy won for the 24th time as a professional, scoring a unanimous decision over ring veteran Nathan Sears. The Kansas City native, who turns 22 next month, has looked quite impressive in his recent outings and seems to have recovered well from a loss to Bill Boggs late last summer that, at least temporarily, slowed his progress. There is some talk that McCoy, who was ranked the #5 contender in this publication's latest middleweight rankings, may get a title shot in the very near future. Sears, who is now 36 years of age, had a title shot of his own long ago. That was back in 1941 when he lost to then champion Archie Rees. Sears 34-15-3 in a career that began when he was just 17 years of age. UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS May 10- Bigsby Garden, New York- former middleweight champion Adrian Petrie (21-3-3) vs Jim Ward (27-3) May 17- Miami, Fl- veteran middleweight Bob Hinkle (29-10-1) faces Jersey Jerry Miller (19-15) May 17-Los Angeles, CA- veteran welterweight Willis May (25-8-2) vs Michael Holloway (22-12-3) May 18- Keystone Arena, Philadelphia: former welterweight champion Mac Erickson (22-4) vs Danny Julian (29-3-2) May 24- St Paul, Mn- former middleweight contender Nick Harris (32-8-1) vs Andy Jackson (25-7-3) May 25 - Lakeside Auditorium, Chicago - HW contender Cannon Cooper (33-6-1) vs John Howe (41-17-1) The Week That Was Current events from the week ending 4/29/1951 The week in Korea started with a major Red offensive which raged along much of the Korean front and pushed United Nations troops back as much as 12 miles. The Red push did manage to drown out much of the ongoing row in Congress over Gen. MacArthur's dismissal. Gen. Ridgeway, new commander in Korea, says that the current Red offensive may prove to be the decisive battle of the Korean war. Late in the week the United Nations troops on the western-central Korean front had withdrawn below the 38th Parallel as Red forces drive towards Seoul. Due to surging enlistments, the Army plans to only draft 20,000 men in June. President Truman said last week that Gen. MacArthur is free to say what he pleases, adding that while he still has strings on the ousted Far East commander, the President does not intend to pull them. Winston Churchill has called off a planned speech in the United States for next month, in a move that is seen as wanting to steer clear of the American political row over Gen. MacArthur. East Germany's Communist police army plans to send officers to Korea for battlefront training with the Chinese Reds. __________________ Cliff Markle HOB1 greatest pitcher 360-160, 9 Welch Awards, 11 WS titles