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The 1955 MJC basketball team
McCook Junior College opened its doors in 1926. The 1926/27 school year was also the year of the first men's basketball team at the college. The classes of MJC were initially held on the third floor of the original YMCA, at the corner of Norris and D Street. With a basketball court on the second floor of the building, it seemed a natural for the school to field a basketball team at the first opportunity.
The first MJC team was a good one. There were scheduling problems, so the opponents varied some, but at the end of the year the team boasted a very respectable 11-3 record.
McCook met two other Junior Col-leges that year, as well as Chadron State Col-lege. Their schedule was rounded out against the Town Teams of Palisade and Culbertson. Because they won three out of four meetings with Hebron Junior College, and won all four of their meetings with Scottsbluff Junior College, they were able to claim the first ever Nebraska Junior College Championship.
It was not until after World War II that MJC was able to claim as good a record in basketball. In 1948-49, with a 13-4 mark they again won their conference championship. But that was the beginning of the Golden Era of MJC basketball. In the next 22 years they won 11 conference titles, in 1952, '54, '55, '56, '59, '60, '61, '62, '68, '69 and '70.
The high point this "Golden Era" was in 1954-55. The MJC team that year posted a 20-6 record, winning Conference Champion-ships in the 5-JC Conference, as well as the Northern Division Crown in the Empire conference. They also earned a coveted trip to the national Junior College Athletic Association Basket-ball Championship in Hutch-inson, Kansas. What is unusual about the '55 team is that it was composed of local players. Each of the five starters grew up less than a two hour's drive from McCook.
Leroy Sprague of Edison was the center on the starting lineup, along with forwards, Jim Muehe, of Goodland, Kan., and Gene Malleck, of Red Willow. They were joined at the guard positions by two McCook High grads, Bill O'Brien and Lamoine Carmichael. The other members of that team included Larry Carpenter and Dick Daniels, Goodland, Paul Sieck, Edison Kan., Max Winter, Kanorado Kan., Jim Solomon, Culbertson, Gene Rodenbeck, Arapahoe, Ken Kircher and Dale Crocker, Red Willow, Henry Krug, Benkelman, Jack Lytle, Warren Chandler, and Larry O'Donnell, of McCook.
Gazette reporter, Leonard "Liz" Johnson saw the potential of the MJC Indians from the very first. In a Jan. 11 story Johnson wrote, "This year's tribe finds a group of eleven boys that are able to play a much faster brand of basketball than teams of the past at McCook College. In the past there have been one or two men that have overshadowed the rest in the scoring department. This year's squad has three men averaging over 10 points a game, but none over 16. This shows a well balanced scoring team when you are hitting 78 points a game."
Before the season was over, the Indians would have five cagers averaging in double figures. The team reeled off 13 straight victories before bowing to the conference favorite, Scottsbluff in February, losing 58-53. MJC dropped their second game of the season at Pueblo Colo., 67-64. McCook was forced to defeat Scottsbluff twice at the end of the season to wrap up the 5-JC crown as well as the Northern Division of the Empire Conference.
McCook advanced to play the Pueblo, the winner of the Southern Division of the Empire Conference. The championship was decided in the best-of-three series. All three games were played at the McCook Memorial Aud-itorium.
In the first game Muehe's clutch shooting at the end of the game, and O'Brien's sparkling floor play carried McCook to a 69-66 victory.
Pueblo came back strong the next night, but McCook seemed to have the victory in hand, when a desperation field goal at the buzzer allowed Pueblo to tie the game in regulation at 76-76. Pueblo went on to beat the MJC Indians 87-79 in overtime, to force a third game.
McCook again came out on the wrong end of a 74-72 score in game three. The victory automatically advanced Pueblo to play in the National Championships in Hutchinson. Fortunately, MJC, with a record of 19-4 was also given a berth at the National Tournament.
McCook lost its first game in the National Tournament to Arkansas City, 58-54, forcing the Indians to advance through the loser's bracket in the double elimination tournament. This proved to be unfortunate because, with the upset by Hannibal Mo., of Pre-tournament favorite, Tyler, Texas, in the first round, the loser's bracket suddenly became more difficult than the winner's bracket.
McCook rebounded in its next game, against Joliet, Ill., 73-61, again showing a very balanced scoring attack by all of the MJC starters. The next game, against Tyler, Texas, was a high scoring affair. Tyler's season average was nearly 20 points higher than the Indians, and MJC was not able to match the Texans' blistering pace, dropping the game 99-90, despite a game high 29 points from Sprague and 20 points from Sieck. The loss ended McCook's season with a 20-6 record.
McCook garnered a number of post-season honors. O'Brien and Muehe were named to the All-Empire All Select team, and Sprague was a First Team selection in both the Empire Conference and the Nebraska 5-JC Confer-ence. But the fact that the Indians earned the right to compete in their first ever National Championship Tournament was the most special honor for all of the members of the team.
In some of MJC's post season games, poor free throw shooting was said to be an important factor in the team's losses. This was particularly galling to each member of the team, but especially so to Gene Malleck, who apparently vowed that he would never lose another game because of ineptness at the free-throw stripe.
He began to practice his free throw shots, at home, at the YMCA, any place, winter or summer, any time he could spare a few minutes of time. After more than 50 years, Gene is still practicing his free throws -- regularly and systematically. In his years after competitive basketball, Gene has literally shot millions of free-throw attempts and has become one of the finest free-throw shooters in the land... Between Jan. 1 and March 31st, 2006 Gene attempted 45,000 free throws.
Of those attempts, Gene completed an amazing 97.7 percent. Those figures are documented in a notebook, which is brought up to date each quarter. He has hit more than 100 free throws in a row 115 times. In 2004 hit a personal best of 835 successful free throws in a row (over a 3 hour 10 minute period).
Young guns at the McCook YMCA are always eager to engage "the old guys" in a pick up game of basketball. In a full court game they perhaps have the advantage, but they should be wary of inviting members of the '55 MJC squad to a free throw contest, especially Gene Malleck. He stays ready -- Just in case.
-- Source: Gazette Centennial Edition, 1882-1982