Dundee Provides Only Thrills In 1st Jousts (2-12-57)

Very little excitement highlighted the opening of the 35th Annual Tuscarawas County Class A Basketball League Tournament at Memorial Hall last night, but what there was little Dundee provided. The favorites romped over their opponents in fine fashion as the defending champion Midvale Blue Devils (11-8) started things off by powering their way to an impressive 97-55 victory over Tuscasrawas (1-18), while in the nightcap Port Washington (12-7) recovered from "shock" the first half to go on to an easy 85-53 decision over Dundee (1-20). In winning their contest Midvale displayed finesse that has been lacking throughout the season with the exception of the last few games on their regular schedule. The Devils unleashed an offensive scoring punch that made the rest of the county coaches sit up and take notice. The Devils, copping ten of 18 games this year and breaking on the black side of the ledger in the last three games, were never in trouble after the first quarter when Tuscarawas, which won only one of 18 games during the season, was only three points behind. The Broncos, undergoing a rebuilding season, won the consolation bracket last spring. In the second contest the Port Washington Purple Riders, carrying an 11-7 record into the tourney, were heavily favored, but overconfidence get them into trouble momentarily as Dundee took advantage of the situation and threw a scare into the rangy Riders. Dundee, which won only one of 20 games during the regular campaign and that an overtime decision against United Local of Hanpverton, had nearly every fan in Memorial Hall cheering for them in the early part of the game as the scrappy lads jumped to an early lead, but were over-powered as the evening developed to drop a lopsided verdict.

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Tuesday, February 12, 1957

The Daily Reporter

Dover, Ohio