Basketball Team Approaches Opener With Flexible Lineup

The varsity basketball team will not be as good as expected when it opens its 26-game season against M.I.T. Friday, but it could have been a lot worse. Coach Norm Shepard will probably start a team that will be missing a few veterans he counted on; on the other hand, he has three sophomores who have come up surprisingly.

Back to form a solid, steadying core are Captain Ed Smith and guard Bill Hickey. Smith pulled a leg muscle in the second week of practice and thus was prevented from scrimmaging for two weeks. In yesterday's game, however, in which the varsity beat Providence College, 71 to 62, the six foot seven conter scored 24 points, although his floorwork was rusty.

Bramhall, Gabler Start

Shepard has kept Hickey in for as long as possible in all of the squad's scrimmages so far. Hickey is quick, strong, and very aggressive-he has compiled five personal fouls in both home scrimmages. Particularly adopt at coming up with rebounds and loose balls, Hickey is a fine play-maker.

Lettermen Bob Bramhall and Jim Gabler also started yesterday-Bramhall at guard and Gabler at forward-but they are both being pressed by less experienced members of the squad.

Bramhall, who has come along slowly, shoots well from the outside. His substitute has been Ambio Redmond, an excellent shot who lacks experience. Gabler has been spelled by Jim Urdan, a fast sophomore with a knack for passing to the right man at the right time.

Biggest surprise of the season so far has been the failure of Gerry Murphy. A player who started several games as a sophomore last year, Murphy has been unable to get going. He did not play at all in the regular scrimmage yesterday, but afterwards looked as if he might soon be up where he was in 1949.

Sophomore Dick Lionette may turn out to be the most valuable player in this year's lineup. The six foot six center started yesterday along with Smith. "Lion" played the conventional center position underneath the backboard on offense, while Smith moved around on the outside, set shooting from there several times.

Good on Rebounds

In the scrimmage against the Business School last week, Lionette made 99 percent of his shots for 27 points; yesterday he scored only eight points and had a poor percentage. With a little more work in actual competition Lionette can become a very important man, for he is consistently good on rebounds.

Forest Hausen, a sophomore guard, passes accurately, follows his shots well, and is a ball-hawk. He replaces Hickey, the same type of player. Junior John Stevenson is a center who is more agile but much smaller than Smith.