12 Sports Aces, January 1943 — page 43: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

BASKET LARCENY 41 © 0 -BeeQoe G1 Br Bos Gra Hie Goo DroGos Bor Gos Bro Dre Hs Doe Hor Gor GreGor Gee Mer O++ Or Ge Ga- B+ ++ Gs + Her Gor Go Gee Deo Ge+ Seo G+ He- Dr Gee Ore Gor Gee ro Hr Grr Gee 10 PreGr + Hoe Ser Hoe Gor Hoe Hoo G++ Ge Gs Dea e thought before, in tryimg to excuse Bounce, came to him, “You're married, aren’t you, Bounce? Got a wife and a kid ve “What in hell’s that got to do with it?” Willie was silent, “I don’t want that State job,” Willie said suddenly, “Pll turn it down if it’s offered me, You can have it, if that’s what you’re after, Bounee. ¥ don’t give a damn about it; But 1 want to win this game. I want to win it for &@ man who was decent enough to put me in charge of his team. I want to win it for a buneh of fellows who plugged along with me from the word go, and who don’t know what a real win is like. I’ll put you back in there, Bounce, Pll feed you the ball. YH give you all your damn glory!” Bounce held silent for a moment. Then: “Nuts!” he said. “Nuts to you and all that stuff! If you put me in—it’s because you got to.” But Bounce was smiling crookedly, a little self-consciously, as he said it. Willie saw sweat gleaming on his forehead. - The Oilers were full of spit and vin- egar, Phey talked it up heatedly with Bounce back in the game. Time and time again Willie called Bounce’s number, and now the plays were clicking. Bounce wasn’t grandstanding. He was playing hard, fast, serious ball. He wasn’t looking up to where the State Teachers’ scout was sitting. He didn’t have to. Willie was spoon-feeding him the balls by which he eclipsed Willie Phelan’s game! Bounee more than matched every goal ef lanky Lank Smith and Mosky Mosco- wicz, But the time was sifting short, and the Oilers still trailed by three points. Little fmgers of fear began to clutch at Willie’s heart. The Jewelers had the ball. Lank eluded Redg Dennis, and Jeweler machinery meshed. A Jeweler guard charged down the center, took a short underhand pass. There was a scramble, but out of the melee Lank emerged, pushing the sphere up toward the cash-box. It loafed on the Gramatky leaped in and batted the ball at Red as the ball dropped off. Bounce took the pass from Red and charged down the sideline. He pulled up in the far cor- ner, looking for a free man. He hesitated as two Jewelers charged him, “Shoot!” Willie yelled. The ball flipped up from Bounce’s hands as if that cry had sprung it. Ht swished neatly through the eords. Bounce grinned. Sweat pasted his shirt to his body, A point behind, and only min- utes to play. Then the Jewelers hurried through to catch the Oilers flatfooted, and tallied. The crowd was berserk! The Jewelers had their three points again! A scramble under the Oiler’s basket _ate up valuable seconds. The Oilers shot and shot again, desperately hurrying their shots. Maddeningly, they rolled off the rim. Then -Gramatky leaped up to push a wavering shot in! Less than a minute to play. The Jew- elers tried to stall, but Willie charged in to knock the ball into Oiler hands. The Oilers hurried, panicked. The Jewelers were desperate. They clung like leeches. Bounce, dribbling fast, was suddenly elear. But he was at mid-floor. He hesi- tated. The chance for glory or defeat was with that ball. The time-keeper’s gun was lifting. Then Bounce passed the ball to Willie, who’d eut for the basket! Willie soared with the shot. The gun exploded. But the ball dropped through as thunder shook the gym. At the lecker room, Bounce said, ““Wil- lie, there’s some tall guy with a broken nose who wants to see you. There’s some others with him. He’s probably got that State job eontract.” Willie started to go, Bounce stopped him, “You put me in the game, You gave me the ball—and you didn’t give a damn what, Willie, you make me feel like a heel. I loused you out of a job once.” Willie stared at him. “Nuts,” he said. “Forget it.” Willie went out, When he came back ‘several minutes later, he was carrying a legal-looking document in his hands. “It looks like we sure enough played a smash-hit game tonight,” Willie an- EOMMICLOOKS (C@