Strack's Cagers Start Quest For "Extra Notices"

By Dave Tefft

NEW YORK — Michigan basketballers tonight open a week-long quest for the traditional “million dollars worth of free publicity.”

The setting is cavernous Madison Square Garden, the occasion is the 13th renewal of the Holiday Basketball Festival, and the free publicity will be the season-long result if Coach Dave Strack’s Wolverines uphold their role of title favorites by defeating Manhattan in today’s opener (7 p.m.) and then adding victories on Wednesday and Saturday nights.

It’s a sports truism that the wellspring of athletic publicity, especially on the wire-service (AP and UPI) level emanates in New York.

“Impress, favorably, the sportswriters and sportscasters in the East early in your season and you're set for extra notices the rest of the way,” the saying goes.

On the college level those “extra notices” are fine for the school which earns them. And they’re a handy recruiting tool, too.

The bulk, perhaps all, of Madison Squire Garden’s 18,499 seats will be filled for each Michigan game and the press, radio, and TV coverage will be extremely heavy.

So. what must Wolverine Cazzie Russell and Co. do to earn those eastern plaudits?

Well, Manhattan is first for the Wolverines and Coach Ken Norton’s Jasper (5-1) are listed as “a good team.”

Manhattan forwards are Larry Lembo (6-4), a good shooter, and Matt Link (6-3), a strong and quick left-hander. Center Henry Chlupsa (6-9) leads the rebounders but often has foul problems. The guards are Len Schappauf (5-10) and Gary Flanaga (6 feet), both fairly quick and good ball handlers.

The experts say the Wolverines should have no trouble unless they go stone cold while the Jaspers turn red hot.

Now, here is a brief rundown on the rest of the Festival field in a possible order of finish:

CINCINNATI (6-1): Ed Jucker’s defense-minded Bearcats aren’t so tough as the NCAA-champion teams which represented the school in 1961 and 1962. But they’re big—6-8, 235-pound Ron Krick seems to have found himself as a legitimate star, and a pair of 6-6 sophomores, Mike Rolf and Ken Calloway, already rate the “stick-out” label.

PRINCETON (5-2): When incomparable Bill Bradley, the Tigers’ all-everything man, is hot, Coach W. H. van Breda Kolff’s team can be a match for most any other. But Bradley’s supporting cast is not a great one.

ST. JOHN’S (4-2): Joe Lap-chick’s Indians include four returnees from a team which developed into a dandy late last year, winning nine of its final 11. The McIntyre brothers, 6-6 Bob and 6-1 Ken, combined for 738 points in 24 starts a season back.

LA SALLE (5-1) Coach Bob Walters has four regulars back from his first Explorers team which won 16 of 25 a season ago. The Explorers feature good balance but haven’t been tested by the tough teams yet.

TEMPLE (5-2): The Owls, coached by Harry Litwack, won the Middle Atlantic Conference crown last year with big Jim Williams the main man. He’s back and Sophomores Chris Kefalos, Walt Carroll, and Joe Hindelang are proving handy helpers.

SYRACUSE (1-5): Slowly rebuilding after ending a 27-game losing streak two years ago, the Owls are on the upgrade but a long way from the top of the hill. Coach Fred Lewis has in 6-3 Dave Bing a skilled playmaker but the rest of the cast has a way to go.

A Wolverine victory tonight will send them against the winner of today’s Princeton-Syracuse game on Wednesday night. Today’s other first-round games pitted St. John's against La Salle and Cincinnati against Temple.

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Two On One

Michigan’s opponents in the Holiday Basketball Festival in Madison Square Garden will have to stop Cazzie Russell’s jump shots better than these two Butler defenders were able to do. Russell’s jumpers are one of Michigan’s biggest weapons and Mike Chapman (left) and Dave Sanders could do little to guard against this one.