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then & now with bill boone

A look at Harold Hugh Gray – Part 5

Wednesday, February 13, 2019 4:00 AM

Jefferson, of Lafayette, won the 1916 championship by taking a thrilling five minute overtime contest from Crawfordsville by a score of 27 to 26. In 1916 the number of districts was increased from fourteen to sixteen, the following teams competing: Bloomington, Lebanon, Washington Township, Martinsville, Liberty Center, Elkhart, Hopewell, Jefferson of Lafayette, Cicero, Valparaiso, Brookville, Vincennes, Kokomo, Seymour, Jefferson, and Crawfordsville. It was a scrap between Jefferson and Crawfordsville. Jefferson downed Martinsville 29 to 17 in the semi-finals while Crawfordsville was winning the right to oppose Jefferson in the final by beating by beating Vincennes 33 to 17. At the end of the regular forty minutes of play in the deciding contest between Jefferson and Crawfordsville the count was knotted at 25 all. In the five minute overtime period Donald Tilson, now playing on the Purdue basketball team, threw the winning two points through the hoop and Grimes now playing with the Wabash College five, tossed a point through the hoop from the foul line. C.F. Apking coached the Bloomington lads to a 20-4 record that year.

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A look at Harold Hugh Gray – Part 4

Wednesday, February 6, 2019 4:00 AM

In 1914 the gates were again thrown open and seventy-seven teams participated in the annual event. The games began at 7 o'clock on a Friday morning and ran continuously on four floors until noon Saturday, when three teams were left to finish the fight. In the afternoon the championship was really decided when the 1913 victors, Wingate, beat Lebanon the 1912 champs by a score of 14-8 in a hotly contested game. Len Lehman coached Wingate that year to a 19-5 record. Wingate defeated Anderson 36-8 in the final game in the tournament held at Indiana University.

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A look at Harold Hugh Gray – Part 3

Wednesday, January 30, 2019 4:00 AM

The following year the state was divided into four districts and after the preliminary elimination meets were held Lebanon, Franklin, Orleans, and Culver competed in the final tournament. With little difficulty Lebanon took the opening game from Orleans by a 28 to 13 score and then trounced Franklin in the finals 51-11, thus winning the crown in 1912. Claude Whitney led the Lebanon team to a record of 16-3 that year. The tournament was again held at Assembly Hall on the campus of Indiana University.

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A look at Harold Hugh Gray – Part 2

Wednesday, January 23, 2019 4:00 AM

This has been the greatest season in the history of high school basketball in Indiana. More teams have advanced from the mediocre class to first rater than ever before and a classier brand of ball was played in all sections of Indiana.
Three hundred and thirty-two quintets competed in the district tournament games and because of the large number of teams, it was necessary for the Board of Control to increase the number of district centers by two, making the total twenty-two. Accordingly twenty-two fast clubs, survivors of so many sectional tournaments, will compete at Purdue University in the Ninth Annual Tournament to decide the champion basketball team in all Hoosierdom, which by the way, is no mean honor since the brand of basketball displayed by the high school quintets in Indiana compares favorably with that shown in any other state of the union.
With twenty-two fast teams entered and fans flocking to Purdue from all parts of the state it appears that it will be the greatest basketball tourney ever held in Indiana.

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History of New Market Basketball Part 13

Monday, December 17, 2018 4:00 AM

The Purple Flyers won their second and last Sectional Championship in 1967 as they had the distinction of being the only team in the history of IHSAA basketball to have a record of 2-17 and yet win the Sectional. Mike Deck led the Flyers that year with 352 points and a high game of 30 against Coal Creek. The other members of the team were Bill McKinney, Steve Blue, Phil Thomas, Terry Priebe, Kent Smith, Don Smith, Joe Cash, Roger Cash, and Martin Merrell.

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History of New Market Basketball Part 12

Monday, December 10, 2018 4:00 AM

The Purple Flyers piloted by Bob Tandy, had a great year in 1961-62 as they won New Market’s sixth Montgomery County Basketball title, dethroning the New Ross Bluejays 62-59 to bring home the trophy and the County Keg. The team of 1962 included Joe Chamness, Steve Powers, Marion Carr, Gary Hood, Phil Merrill, Ronnie Miles, Jerry Vaughn, Jim Long, Jim Booton, and Phil Carr. The Flyers were led in scoring that year by Steve Powers who was also an outstanding pitcher recording nine no-hitters for the baseball team. Powers scored 414 points that year for an average of 18.4 per game. He had a high game of 37 points against Dover that year.

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History of New Market Basketball Part 11

Monday, December 3, 2018 4:00 AM

In 1957, New Market entered the building that would serve the Purple Flyers until consolidation in 1971. They dedicated the building on November 5, 1957, before approximately 1400 spectators. They celebrated the occasion by beating Waveland 36-35. That team went on to win New Market’s fifth County Championship again defeating Waveland in the final game.
John Lytle was the leading scorer on the County Champs that year as he netted 369 points in 22 games for an average of 16.8 ppg. Lytle would finish with 620 points in his 46 game career. The other players were Fred Deck, Ralph Jarvis, John Sayler, Ed Stephens, Bob Swank, Mike Hockersmith, Jack Howard, John Keller, Vaughn Poynter, J. T. Stickler, and Dennis Wray.

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History of New Market Basketball Part 10

Monday, November 26, 2018 4:00 AM

Here is the HOF bio for Red Gardner.
“High School—New Market High School 1941: College: Wabash/ DePauw University 1948. New Market Purple Flyers won the county championship three consecutive years with Red Gardner on the team. Named to the Coaches All-Sectional team in 1941. Attended Wabash College two years prior to enlistment in the U.S. Navy where he was selected for Officers Training Program. Admitted to DePauw University in 1946 where he earned Little All-American Honors two years. All-State selection two years, and was leading scorer for three years. Played with the Minneapolis Lakers pro championship team 1948-49. From the New Market Purple Flyers to the Minneapolis Lakers with a war to interrupt is a long road to travel, but Red handled it well. Coached 25 years of high school basketball in Ohio, retiring in 1983.”

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History of New Market Basketball Part 9

Monday, November 19, 2018 4:00 AM

The New Market Purple Flyers prominence began in the late 30’s when one of their own graduates, Harold E. (Jack) Hester returned home to coach basketball. Jack played for New Market in the early 30’s graduating in 1934. He then moved up the road to Wabash College as did many of the early Montgomery County graduates. Jack lettered in basketball for three years under the legendary Pete Vaughan, captaining the Little Giants in his senior year. After graduation, Jack returned to New Market and led the Purple Flyers to three straight County Championships in 1939, 1940 and 1941. He loaned the hardware to Bowers in 1942 as the Flyers reloaded then reclaimed the title in 1943, their fourth in five years. The Purple Flyers were led in the first three crowns by three players who played on all three championship teams. The three were Earl (Red) Gardner, Jr., Bud Marts, and Bill Etter. After graduation, Jr. Gardner and Bill Etter went to Wabash for two years before joining the service. After service, Bill Etter returned to Wabash graduating in 1948. He returned to New Market and joined his father and brother in the family automotive business which still exists today. Etter Ford has been a familiar name in Montgomery County for almost 100 years. Bill’s father Lloyd B. Etter and his uncle Ray Etter also played basketball at New Market and Wabash in the middle and late teens. Lloyd lettered in football at Wabash in 1918 and 1919 and basketball in 1920. Brother Roy lettered at Wabash in basketball in 1920. Nancy Gardner (Rogers) told me a story illustrating the love that the Etter Ford Company had for the New Market community in those early days

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History of New Market Basketball Part 8

Monday, November 5, 2018 4:00 AM

The picture that you see of the three Purple Flyers holding County Championship trophies will remind County basketball fans of a great era in Montgomery County basketball. Of the three, the subject of our little article went on to a great career in basketball and education. His sister Nancy Rogers (Bob) and brother Jack Gardner still live here in Crawfordsville. Jack remembers going to Oakwood to play against his brother’s team when Bill Melvin was coaching the Purple Flyers in the early 50’s. Jack said that he and teammates Norm Surface and Mac Cash were on the team that year. It was a close game with New Market leading by a point at the end. Oakwood took a last second shot and missed. It came down between the three of them and was taken away by an Oakwood player who put it back in for the Oakwood win. That player was Barry McKay who turned out to be an outstanding tennis player for the University of Michigan and played on five Davis Cup teams. He is now highly-respected tennis announcer.

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History of New Market Basketball Part 7

Monday, October 29, 2018 4:00 AM

The war had already begun and both young men left college to serve their country after a year and a half at Wabash. Jr. went into the Navy and while serving on a mine-sweeper continued to play a lot of basketball in China. His duties with the Shore Patrol still left him time to play ball. After his enlistment was up, the Navy sent him home to enroll at DePauw University and join the V12 program to become a naval officer. While at DePauw, Jr. Gardner played on the great DePauw teams of 1946-47, and 1947-48 when the Tigers were 16-3 and 14-6 respectively. Members of those DePauw teams were Stan Landon, Bill Walton, Wally Etchison, and Deac Freeland. Led by his efforts, the Tigers qualified for the NAIB (National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball) tournament after the 1946-47 season. He was the leading scorer for all three of his years at DePauw scoring 683 points, a record that placed him in the top ten Tiger scorers well into the 70’s. They also beat the Little Giants six straight times during the Gardner era at DePauw. He was named All-State and Little All-American in his junior and senior years and was recommended by Chuck Taylor of Converse shoes to the NBA, then drafted by the Minneapolis Lakers. He played in 50 games in 1948-49 and scored 89 points. After the championship season of 1948-49, Red was traded to the St. Louis Hawks for Slater Martin. He reported to the Hawks, but began to experience some physical problems that would bother him for the rest of his life and decided to leave the NBA ranks and continue his passion for basketball as a coach.

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History of New Market Basketball Part 6

Sunday, October 21, 2018 9:48 PM

The story of Red Gardner is the story that every boy who ever played basketball in Indiana dreams of starring in. He played on the team that won the first County Championship for his school. He recalled in later years that, “The celebration bonfires in the middle of town after each of the three consecutive County champion-ships was a pleasant indoctrination into the values of winning athletics. I’m sure that the ’39, ’40, and ’41 championships contributed to a unity and feeling of pride in the whole town.” Red continued, “Harold “Jack” Hester was our coach and I’m sure we would have tried to move mountains if he had asked.” Red was named to the All-County and All-Sectional teams in both his junior and senior years and was the president and Valedictorian of his class when he graduated in 1941.

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History of New Market Basketball Part 4

Monday, October 1, 2018 4:00 AM

The photograph album had several pictures of New Market basketball teams and individuals. One of the pictures showed three young men holding trophies. It turns out that the three young men were the only members of the Purple Flyers who played on the teams that won three straight Montgomery County Championships, an unprecedented feat which didn’t happen again until the Darlington Indians accomplished it in 1968, 1969 and 1970. The three young men who played on the County championship teams of 1939, 1940 and 1941 were Bill Etter, Bud Marts and Jr. Gardner. Being a student of Montgomery County Basketball history, I had heard of all three and their equally legendary coach, Jack Hester, who was my basketball coach at Ladoga High School in the early 50s. Jack has the distinction of being the coach with the most County Championships in his coaching career. He was the coach of five winners at New Market and one at Ladoga. He is the only County coach to win three straight County championships. When Darlington won three straight near the end of the days before consolidation, they had two different coaches, Galen Smith, who won it in 1968 and Dave Nicholson who was the Indian coach in 1969 and 1970.

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The History of New Market Basketball Part 3

Monday, September 24, 2018 4:00 AM

We started at the National City Bank building which also previously housed The Paper of Montgomery County. The bank building is built on the site of the old YMCA Armory, which I am convinced as are many others was the site of the first basketball game played outside the state of Massachusetts. We next visited the Basketball Heritage Project display at the old Steck’s store on Main Street. We looked through the window at the pictures, trophies, pennants, and other memorabilia placed there by Carolyn Teague and her committee. Next, we visited Bob and Marcheta Dixon’s antique store and Montgomery County Sports Museum on West Main. While Emerson was looking at old uniforms, letter sweaters, senior cords, cheerleader outfits and other items, Marcheta (a former cheerleader for the Alamo Warriors of the Charlie Bowerman era) mentioned to me that she had a photograph album that I might be interested in. That is how I ended up in the living room of a New Market Purple Flyer legend, Bill Etter on a sunny Wednesday afternoon.

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History of New Market Basketball Part 1

Monday, September 10, 2018 4:00 AM

How did an ex-Ladoga Canner end up sitting in the living room of a New Market Purple Flyer legend and his legendary coach? It all started with the purchase of the best book on Indiana basketball that I have ever read. The book is entitled Hoosiers All by Emerson Houck. I picked it up at Barnes and Noble and began to leaf through it. I stopped when I saw my name in the book. What was my name doing in a book? It turns out that the author had found an article about my old friend, Charlie Bowerman, on a Wabash college blog that I had been working with. I fired off an e-mail to Emerson Houck and told him that it was the best book I had ever read because it had my name in it. He fired back an e-mail and said that he wanted to come down and visit the “Cradle.” Of course, he meant Crawfordsville, the “Cradle of Indiana Basketball.” Well, to make to long story even longer, he came to Crawfordsville and we toured the historic places that relate to the beginning of basketball outside its birthplace in Springfield, Massachusetts.
New Market started playing basketball in 1904; the first players were Roy Demoret, Newton Busenbark, Clay Rice, Harry Galey, Fern Busenbark, L.D. McMullen, and Ed Groves

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