/Of Pistol Pete and Wondrous Wendell and a preliminary game-turned-main event

Of Pistol Pete and Wondrous Wendell and a preliminary game-turned-main event

So I told him the story of my first ever Pistol Pete Maravich performance. This was February 1967, back when college freshmen weren’t allowed to play on the Varsity. As a 14-year old gym rat, I had never heard of Maravich and was only able to read and hear the tall tales. LSU freshmen were scoring about 50 points per game. The Baby Bengals, or as they were known then, were visiting Hattiesburg to face the Southern Miss freshmen. They featured a teenage wunderkind of theirs, Wendell Ladner who would go on become a professional All-Star at the old ABA. Rarely have such preliminaries, like the ones that were held in Hattiesburg at the time, been so popular. The Reed Green Coliseum was packed at more than 9,000 when the teams arrived on the ground for tipoff at 5:05 p.m. You should remember that at that time, varsity games often attracted crowds in the hundreds and not the thousands. Maravich stood 6 feet 5 inches tall, and his slim, loose-fitting socks and floppy mop-top hair made him appear as thin as a broomstick. He looked anemic standing beside Ladner. Ladner, who was just a little taller than him, was broad-shouldered, muscular and built like an NFL tight end. I can remember thinking that if they collided, Wondrous Wendell (as he was called) might split Pistol Pete in half. LSU won the opening tip. The ball went to Pistol Pete at top of the key. You’ll be amazed at what he did next. He took three, two, and then three dribbles backwards. – from near the court. He stopped, and while everyone was still trying to figure it out, he brought the ball to his chest, and he let go of a high-arching two-hand shot from approximately 40 feet. The ball flew through the net without touching any metal. After a brief silence, there was an extended collective “Oooooh …”” and it was over. Even a 40-footer was only worth two points. Back then, there was no three-point line. Maravich would score 44 points per games over his three varsity years. If there had been a three point line, it would have easily been more than 50 points per game. Southern Miss’s freshman team was outstanding, with Ladner, from Necaise Crossing and point guard Johnny Vitrano, both from New Orleans, and Paul Dodge, from Gulfport. Adolph Rupp at Kentucky, Babe McCarthy in Mississippi State, and many other top-ranked basketball schools offered scholarships to Ladner, who was and is still the most highly-respected basketball player in Southern Miss history. Because his older brother Berlin was a Southern Miss player, Ladner chose Southern Miss. His high school Hancock North Central once had a starting line-up of all Ladners and brothers. They were trained by Roland Ladner. Vitrano was assigned the task of guarding Maravich. He would later tell me, many years later: “That first shot had been from 40 or 45 yards. That I know. He was supposed to have me guard him. Maravich was only getting started. He hit more long-range shots than he did, but he also hit a variety of mid-range jump shots as well as twisting, spinning layups. He was a dribbler, putting his hands between his legs and behind the back. He was a good passer, often without even looking at the person he was passing to. He once hit his teammates in the chest or face a couple of times when they didn’t expect him to make such sharp, on-target passes at impossible angles. Ladner was catching up to him almost bucket for bucket, and clearing almost every rebound. The lead changed hands several times. LSU led by one point with six minutes remaining in the second half. It was then that it happened. Vitrano, who is now a New Orleans high school principal, recalled that Pete was going to layup while I was trying draw a charge. Paul Dodge came from behind and knocked Pete down. Pete fell face-first to the ground. “There was blood everywhere.” Maravich was dazed and unsteady and was helped off the court. He was then taken to the USM Infirmary, where he was treated for a laceration over his left eye and given seven stitches. Ladner and USM were now in control. We believed we knew everything about Pistol Pete. We were wrong. Maravich, with a large white bandage over his left eye, returned three minutes into the second period. Vitrano: “He looked almost dead. He looked almost dead. He can’t continue doing that stuff. But Maravich did more. Over the last 17 minutes, the Pistol scored 27 with a variety of moves and shots that I can’t even describe, more than half-a century later. Vitrano does better: “Pete just ate my lunch. He was unconscious ….One occasion, they had a fast break for two and I was the one. Pete had the ball, and I knew he would pass behind my back. I made my move to take the ball from him as soon as he passed behind his back. He then switches to a bounce pass between his legs that hits the guy for an easy layup. He did it all at full speed. He made me look foolish.” USM was still leading with nine minutes left. Vitrano, who is the team’s quarterback, was a top-shelf defensive player, but he failed to stop the unstoppable. That was it. Maravich and the Tigers seized the lead, and then pulled away for a victory of 92 to 84, despite Ladner’s heroics. Wondrous Wendell was the winner with 32 points and, dare I say it, 24 rebounds. Maravich? Maravich scored 42, despite missing almost a quarter the game to have his facial repaired. This was the preliminary match. About 30 minutes later, the USM varsity had tipped off. Only a few fans remained to discuss what they had just seen. Yes, 53 years later, we still do.