Senior Guard Ralph Vesco of the Tuscarawas Broncos goes up for a jump shot with Forward John Fitzgerald of the Flushing Orioles attempting to make the stop in last night's hectic contest. Junior Forward Terry Deems and Senior Center Larry (Doofy) Myers of the Broncos move in at left, while Senior Guard Jim Henry of Tusky goes in at right.
Six-four Senior Center Harry Thompson of the Tuscarawas Broncos fires a shot at the basket in last night's game with Forward Ray Ornouski (18) attempting to stop the attempt and the Orioles' Forward John Fitzgerald and the Broncos' Senior Center Larry (Doofy) Myers waits under the bucket.
Junior Guard Rich Davis of the Tuscarawas Broncos flies down the floor on a fast break as he goes in for 2 points , while Guard Chuck Campanizzi and Forward Ray Ornouski of the Flushing Orioles chase him. Senior Guard Ralph Vesco of the Broncos trails his teammate down the floor.
BRILLIANT - The Tuscarawas Battling Broncos really earned that title last night as they kept alive their reputation as record spoilers by edging the Flushing Orioles 61-60 in the Class B District Tournament at Brilliant. Junior forward Terry Deems, tow-headed Junior forward, was the lad who turned almost certain defeat into glorious victory as he grabbed a rebound and flipped the ball through the nets with 4 seconds remaining in the contest.
Seconds before that it appeared that Orioles' unbeaten skein was intact and the Broncos had failed in their bid for a victory, but a quick change of events reversed the picture and the perfect record of the Belmont county Champions lay shattered after 21 straight victories. Head Coach Chuck Lorenz's charges had to fight their way from behind throughout most of the game and the only lead they had held prior to the last period was a brief 30-27 edge at the very outset of the 2nd half.
The Blue and White proved equal to the task and vaulted into Friday's finals with the Strasburg Tigers to assure Tuscarawas County of another Class B District Basketball Title. The final canto was a hectic, see-saw affair that saw the lead change hands 11 times, the Birds had taken a 60-57 lead with 45 seconds left in the contest and it looked as through the Orioles had it all wrapped up.
Deems shot changed all that and Tusky was swamped with well-wishers as the final buzzer sounded with Flushing vainly trying to get the ball up the long floor for just one crack at the basket.
The Tuscarawas Broncos (6-0) (21-2) experienced a bad case of the jitters in the opening quarter, when despite almost full control of the backboards, the Tusky could not score, even from underneath. The Flushing Orioles (21-1) whose forward John Fitzgerald and guard Chuck Campanizzi literally had a field day with the tight Broncos' zone defense and shot the Orioles out to a 19-8 advantage.
Head Coach Lorenz switched into a man-for-man defense in the 2nd frame and the Riders galloped back into contention as they held the Birds to a slim 8 points, while they tallied 18. Deems and Senior center Larry (Doofy) Myers gave the Blue and White a big edge under the boards over Flushing's center Carter Howell and the 2 accounted for 14 of Tuscarawas' 18 markers in that period.
Fitzgerald was all the offense the Orioles had in that 2nd frame and the clever forward made difficult shots look easy as he swished the ball through the nets with a flick of his arm. The Birds' spark plug drew his 3rd personal foul midway in the 2nd stanza; however and was lifted for the stretch drive.
That's where Tusky really moved as the Broncos whipped in 9 straight points to cut a 10-point margin of 27-17 down to a slim 27-26 at halftime. Tuscarawas appeared to be moving swiftly into the drivers' seat as they scored 3 points at the outset of the 3rd stanza to take their 1st lead of the game 30-27, but Flushing quickly deadlocked the count and moved back ahead, running their advantage to 5 points as Fitzgerald and guard Gary Dale connected from action.
Senior guard Ralph Vesco, Deems and Junior guard Rich Davis sliced that edge to 2 points as the quarter ended with the Orioles ahead 40-38. Doofy drew his 4th personal foul midway in the stanza and Coach Lorenz experimented with several combinations in order to regain the board control that had been his with Myers in the tilt. The 4th Canto was all Deems for Tuscarawas with 6-1 Senior center and Davis chiming in with baskets at crucial times, but it was Deems who pulled Tusky into victory.
Deems canned 6 field goals and 2 free throws in that final period to offset a spurt of 9 points by Fitzgerald and Howell's only offensive show of the game. Deems ended up the game with a total of 26 points, while Fitzgarald's total topped both teams at 27. Howell, Flushing's leading scorer, came through with 11, 7 of these coming in the final canto.
TUSCARAWAS BRONCOS - 61
Larry (Doofy)Myers F 3-5-11
Terry Deems F 11-4-26
Dave Myers F 0-0-0
Ed Hill F 0-0-0
Harry Thompson C 3-0-6
Rich Davis G 4-0-8
Jim Henry G 1-1-3
Ralph Vesco G 2-3-7
FLUSHING ORIOLES - 60
Ray Ornouski F 1-2-4
John Fitzgerald F 12-3-27
Carter Howell C 2-7-11
Chuck Campanizzi G 3-0-6
Gary Dale G 4-1-9
Rinkes G 1-1-3
Thursday, March 11, 1954
Art Cicconetti, Sports Editor
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio
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