March 12, 1964 — Devils end drought with state tournament berth
Mac's boys are headed for state! It's been three long years since Harold Maciejewski has piloted a club to the State Tournament in Lincoln, but the drought ended at Bloomfield Friday night with a 61-52 victory over neighbor to the north, Laurel. The Bears pulled an upset victory over Wayne in the Devil's own tourney early this year, 75 to 62, and a repeat upset was undoubtedly on the minds of fans from both towns.
Laurel got the opening tip and Bear Captain Denny Sutton registered the point. Their lead lasted only momentarily when the Devils took the ball to their end of the floor and Jim Mau executed a three-point play for a 3-2 lead. In the end, the Devils were apparently trying to feed the ball inside to Jim Mau, but the Devils center was well covered and in no position to get off a good shot. So Jim Kern, with five seconds showing, took a jumper form about the free-throw line which sliced the net.
Wayne came up with 11 of 20 on free-throws, and was credited with 55%; Neligh had 13 of 16 for 81%. Jim Kern led Wayne scoring with 24, followed by Jim Mau with 15. The Wayne Blue Devils will meet the David City Aquinas team at the Pershing Auditorium.
