Mac's Boys: Here We Go Again

Note: IU Athletics is partnering with IU Press to share chapters from some of their recently-published books on IU Sports. The following is a chapter from Jason Hiner's book, Mac's Boys: Branch McCracken and the Legendary 1953 Hurryin' Hoosiers, published by IU Press in 2006. The second-half of this chapter will appear tomorrow on IUHoosiers.com. Additional details about this book can be found here.

To those who may be about to watch their first collegiate basketball season, we must explain at this time that the term "Hurryin' Hoosiers" means a McCracken-driven jet machine powered by 10 legs, steered by 10 keen eyes, and motivated by the desire of 5 fighting hearts to dethrone the University of Illinois.

—Herb Michelson, Indiana Daily Student

The issue of who was going to be IU's fifth starter, winning the spot that had been reserved for Sammy Esposito, remained up in the air until the final week of practice—the week of Thanksgiving. IU students had most of the week off and most of them went home for the holiday, but the Hoosier basketball players stayed in Bloomington.

Their season opener against Valparaiso was the following Monday, the day classes resumed, so Branch and Mary Jo had the whole team over for Thanksgiving dinner at their tiny house on 801 South High Street.

And since the campus was pretty much empty, many of the basketball players also came back for leftovers later in the weekend.

Going into that final week of practice, the competition for the starting guard spot had narrowed down to three players: sophomores Burke Scott and Phil Byers, and junior Jim DeaKyne. Scott and Byers were both hard-nosed defenders, while DeaKyne had a little more experience and was a much better outside shooter. By the weekend, McCracken decided to go with Burke Scott, who was a pesky and active defender but whose offense was a big question mark. It didn't hurt that Scott was the fastest and most athletic player on the team.

The year before, as a freshman, Scott nearly got a chance to play on the varsity. Don Schlundt ended up being the only Hoosier freshman who took advantage of the Korean War waiver and made the varsity, and he played with the big boys from start to finish. But Burke Scott and Jack Tilly had played so well on the freshman team that McCracken decided to call them up to the varsity in midseason. Unfortunately, the first day the two of them reported for varsity practice, McCracken told them, "You can forget it. You both flunked a class." Scott had flunked U.S. History and he was ineligible for the rest of the season, but he still got to practice with the varsity and got some valuable schooling from it. "I used to go to practice every day and guard [Sammy] Miranda while he practiced dribbling full court," said Scott, "and then Esposito would do the same thing. I learned to play pretty good defense that way." Jack Tilly, who had been an Indiana all-star as a senior in high school, also got to practice with the varsity and played very well. However, he left school that spring and didn't return to IU for his sophomore year.

Burke Scott almost left IU that first year, too, although he nearly left much sooner than Tilly. During his first semester on campus, he wasn't sure if he wanted to stay in Bloomington. "I wasn't crazy about college," said Burke. "I wasn't crazy about being away from home." At one point, he basically decided he was going to drop out, but his father gave him a call.

"I heard you were quitting school," Burke's dad said.

"Yeah," Burke said.

"That's fine if you think you can come back here and find a job," his dad replied. "Just don't let me catch your little ass in the city limits." That changed Burke's mind. "So I decided after him saying that, I thought I'd better stay at IU, and that was the end of that," Burke said. "The thought of quitting didn't enter my mind anymore." During the rest of his freshman year Burke turned things around in the classroom and gained confidence on the court by holding his own against the varsity. McCracken even gained enough confidence in Burke as a freshman that he didn't mind singling the kid out to illustrate a lesson during one practice that a bunch of fans had come to watch.

"I remember one day there was a couple thousand people in there watching us practice," Burke remarked. "When I played in high school, our coach let us make some fancy passes, behind the back and all of that. McCracken didn't believe in that kind of stuff. So one day in practice I made a behind-the-back pass to somebody and he blew the whistle and he told all of the players to go to the side of the floor.

He was showing off in front of those [fans]. So he got the student managers out there in the middle of the court and he got me, and he made me throw the ball about twenty-five times behind my back to one of the managers. Then he said, 'Are you getting tired yet?' And I said, 'No, not really.' And then he said, 'Let me tell you something.

That last pass you made is the last one of those that you're going to make as long as you're up here with me.' So I never made another pass like that. And those people in the stands were about to go crazy.

That's the kind of [coach] he was. He didn't mean a whole lot by it. He was just trying to prove a point and show off a little bit."

When McCracken penciled Burke Scott into the starting lineup at the beginning of the 1952–53 season, the speedy sophomore did not have the position completely locked up. There was a feeling that Byers or DeaKyne could still grab the starting spot if Burke didn't perform. However, Burke quickly closed the door on that possibility.

There was no chance that any of the Hoosiers were going to take the Valparaiso Crusaders lightly in the season opener on Monday, December 1 at 7:30 pm. Even though Indiana was undoubtedly favored to win the game, Coach Kenny Suesens's team was fully expected to give IU all it could handle. The year before, Valpo had come into the Fieldhouse and led the Hoosiers at halftime, but they couldn't keep pace in the second half as IU survived for a 68-59 win. The 1952–53 Crusaders were young and tall (with a front line that was 6' 8", 6' 3", and 6' 3"), and they were already 2-0 with a 104-68 win over Hope (Michigan) and a 62-50 victory over Concordia of St. Louis. Valpo's big veteran center, Don Bielke, had scored a total of thirty-eight points in those two opening games and was expected to give Schlundt an early test to see how much the Hoosier pivotman had improved since his rookie campaign.

On the day of the Valpo game, the Indiana players began their regular game-day routine that they would keep throughout the season for home games. By 3:00 pm (when the players would normally be practicing), all the players were supposed to be in their rooms lying down to get a final rest. They had to meet at the Indiana Memorial Union at 5:00 pm sharp for the pregame meal with Coach McCracken.

And when Branch McCracken said 5:00, he meant 5:00, or better yet 4:45. A player had better not be there at 5:01.

"Don't ever be late," remembered Bobby Leonard. "[McCracken] would not stand for being late for even one minute.... When he set a time for something you better be there on time." In fact, most of the players planned to arrive at least fifteen minutes early to any team activity, just in case there were any unexpected holdups along the way.

For the team meal, the Hoosiers always had the same thing: a glass of water (no ice), a five-ounce filet steak, a five-ounce baked potato (prebuttered), two pieces of dry toast with one pat of butter, and coffee or tea with milk and sugar. A number of the players, especially several of the starters, were too nervous to eat much. Farley, Leonard, and Burke Scott didn't eat much at all. Farley was the worst.

Off the court, he was normally a quiet, laid-back guy with an easy smile, but when it came time to play basketball, he was a bundle of nerves. He would get so worked up right before a game that he would usually vomit in the locker room, so he wisely didn't eat a whole lot at the pregame meal.

After they finished the meal, McCracken and the players walked out of the north side of the Indiana Memorial Union and across Seventh Street to the IU Fieldhouse to get dressed and start warming up.

The players slipped on their cream-colored satin shorts and belts, as well as their close-fit cotton IU basketball jerseys which had "INDIANA" sewn across the front in raised block lettering. Next, the players took turns in the training room, where trainer Spike Dixon and his student assistants taped the ankles of every player. Then it was time to pull on their thick wool socks with a red band at the top (two or three pairs in some cases) and lace up their white Chuck Taylor All Star sneakers with red laces. Finally, they pulled on their red satin warm-up pants and their red satin warm-up jackets, which had a large white "I" sewn on the left side. Coach McCracken emerged in his customary navy blue suit with a white shirt and red tie, and he had on his classic black-rimmed glasses (which he didn't always wear during practice). Mac had just started wearing the glasses two seasons earlier and they gave him the look of a benevolent basketball professor, whereas without the glasses he looked more rugged and foreboding.

While the varsity was getting dressed and taped, out on the Fieldhouse floor the freshman team was having an intrasquad scrimmage, red vs. white, while the crowd filed in to take their seats in the bleachers.

This was the regular routine between 6:00 and 7:00 pm.

A ticket to the game simply got you in the door at the IU Fieldhouse.

There were no assigned seats, so you had to get there early to get yourself a good spot. The students usually took up one whole side of the giant wooden bleachers, and there were unofficial areas for each class. The seniors, of course, got the center court area. Different groups had their own clusters where they would sit together, and sometimes they even devised their own cheers. For example, fraternities, sororities, and some of the residence halls had their own clusters.

The football players usually sat together, and they had their own cheer they loved to shout. It went like this: "Hoo-sa-saa! Hoo-sa-saa! Hit 'em in the head with a Koo-ba-saa!" The Valparaiso game was packed, but it wasn't a sellout. There were about a thousand tickets available on game day and they sold for $1.50 each at the Fieldhouse ticket window. The public could also purchase season tickets for $16.50 for all eleven home games. On the day of the game, IU athletic director Paul "Pooch" Harrell announced that season tickets had been selling very well, right on pace with their usual numbers. There was a fear that ticket sales might decrease because, for the first time ever, ten of Indiana's eleven home games would be televised. WTTV in Bloomington had a new $85,000 mobile unit to transmit the games from the IU Fieldhouse, and the Valparaiso game was the only home game that would not be televised.

Once the freshmen finished their game and cleared the floor, the IU pep band struck up a loud and upbeat tune, and the IU players burst out of the locker room and jogged up to the court while the home crowd erupted into a stirring ovation. The band continued to play while the Hoosiers ran through their layup line, shot free throws, and practiced shots from inside and outside. And if the music wasn't loud or upbeat enough, the band director got an earful from McCracken to kick it up a notch. Mac wanted his boys fired up by game time.

When warm-ups were over, the starting lineup of the visiting Crusaders and Coach Kenny Suesens were introduced to cordial applause, and the starters lined up on the foul line across from their bench.

Then, the IU starting lineup was introduced to frenzied applause and took their spot on the opposite foul line, and the biggest round of applause came when Coach McCracken was announced. Next, with both sets of starters still standing out on the floor and the coaches and reserves standing along the sidelines, a huge American flag was raised up from the middle of the floor to the rafters and a spotlight shone on it as the national anthem played.

Then, while an early snowfall covered the ground outside the IU Fieldhouse, the Hoosiers kicked off one of the greatest seasons in IU basketball history.

Valparaiso snatched the opening tip and the Crusaders struck first blood when guard Jim Howard buried a quick shot to give the visitors a 2-0 lead. However, Bobby Leonard didn't let that stand for long.

He scored two quick baskets to put IU on top, and the Hoosiers never trailed again. IU took a 20-9 lead after 6:25 had elapsed, as Valparaiso focused its defense on Schlundt and the Indiana forwards and guards found room for easy scores. The Hoosiers dominated the defensive backboards in the opening ten-minute quarter and used that advantage to trigger fast break after fast break. At the end of the first period, IU led 23-14. Lou Scott replaced Schlundt for most of the second quarter and had three tip-ins to help push the Hoosier lead to 47-27 at the break.

IU came out of the locker room and the starters triggered an 8-0 run to open the second half and push the lead to 55-27, with Leonard scoring twice in that key stretch. McCracken experimented with some of his reserves for the rest of the period and the lead shrunk to 71- 46 at the end of the third quarter. In the opening minute of the fourth quarter, Dick Farley fouled out of the game. But then Burke Scott and Bobby Leonard each drove the lane and scored to give IU a comfortable cushion. In the middle of the fourth quarter, Mac sent in Lou Scott and had both of his big centers in the game at the same time, which didn't last long as Schlundt fouled out at the 4:13 mark. Then Burke Scott took over down the stretch to finish off the visitors.

Burkie had four field goals and a free throw in the fourth quarter, including a twenty-footer in the final minute that gave Indiana its final victory margin of 95-56. During that final quarter, senior Jim Schooley got in the game and scored on a tip-in, the first points of his collegiate career.

Bobby Leonard had triggered the IU attack all night and he finished with sixteen points and six rebounds. However, the surprise star of the game was Burke Scott, who finished with sixteen points, six rebounds, and six assists (assists weren't part of the official stats back then, but one newspaper reporter credited Burke with six assisted field goals). All in all, IU had six players in double figures. Don Schlundt had thirteen points, Charlie Kraak had thirteen points and twelve rebounds, Dick Farley had twelve points (on 5-for-7 shooting from the floor), and Lou Scott had eleven points off the bench. Jim DeaKyne and Dick White also chipped in five points apiece off the bench.

IU put up ninety-five shots from the field and hit forty-two of them for a .442 percentage (which was outstanding for that era) while holding Valpo to only sixty-nine shots. The Crusaders only hit sixteen, for a.232 shooting percentage. Even though they were the home team, the aggressive Hoosiers were called for twenty-nine fouls to only fourteen for the Crusaders. That put Indiana right on pace from the previous season, when IU led the nation in personal fouls with 644, or 29.3 per game (in fact, the Hoosiers were tops in the nation in fouls for two years in a row and had been in the top eight for five straight seasons). Indiana's ninety-five points against Valparaiso tied the Fieldhouse record set the previous season against Ohio State. The thirty nine-point win also set a new record for victory margin in a season opener.

By all accounts, the Hoosiers looked great. They owned the backboards against a team with good size, they ran the fast break like they were in midseason form, and they had great scoring balance. Of course, McCracken still found a couple of soft spots. IU shot only eleven of twenty-two (.500) from the foul line, and IU's interior defense allowed Don Bielke to score a game-high seventeen points. And, as good as IU looked against Valpo, there was little time for pats on the back, because the Hoosiers' schedule was about to get a lot tougher.

Because of the expanded eighteen-game Big Ten schedule, IU had only four scheduling slots for non-conference opponents, and one of those was reserved for a midseason showdown with Butler. That left Indiana with only three games in December before the start of conference play. After Valparaiso, IU went on the road for two games against top-ranked opponents Notre Dame and Kansas State.

"You couldn't pick two stronger teams for us at this stage of the campaign," said Coach McCracken. "Notre Dame, one of the top teams in the Midwest, is hard to defeat on its home floor, and Kansas State was rated second in the nation in the [United Press] poll." In that preseason UP poll, the Hoosiers were ranked No. 8, and even received one first-place vote. Notre Dame was ranked No. 12 and Minnesota was ranked No. 17. The defending national champion, Kansas, was ranked No. 19. The No. 1–ranked team in the land—by a wide margin—was Illinois. The Fighting Illini were the two-time defending Big Ten champs and were coming off a strong third-place finish in the NCAA Tournament the previous season. They returned five of their first six players and had a squad with great size, speed, experience, and depth. According to most of the preseason polls and publications, they were the nearly unanimous favorite for the 1953 national championship. On Thursday, December 4, the same day the poll was released, an AP report came out of Chicago from the Big Ten coaches meeting. Not surprisingly, the basketball coaches selected Illinois as the favorite to win the conference, with Indiana and Minnesota as the top challengers. And, although it led to some strange scheduling in December, most of the conference coaches expressed support for the eighteen-game round-robin Big Ten schedule, which they felt would produce an undisputed champion...

Tomorrow we will have the conclusion of this chapter.

Indiana University Athletics

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