Kankakee Valley Post, Volume 20, Number 1, DeMotte, Jasper County, 9 December 1949 — '32 All-American Netter Teaching At Kniman [ARTICLE]

'32 All-American Netter Teaching At Kniman

Marshall Tackett Who Gained Fame At Martinsville, Butler U., Now Hoosier Pedagogue His tall, well proportioned frame has that same trim athletic look it did back there in the days when Martinsville high school ruled the Indiana basketball domain. And the days when he was an All-American guard of Butler university. Marshall Tackett is the name. Now a Hoosier schoolmaster at Kniman, in Jasper county’s Walker township, where he serves as principal. Marshall Tackett also is an AllAmerican when it comes to modesty, for it was with considerable difficulty we managed to draw from him a biref synopsis of his brilliant basketball career which saw him reach the very crest of USA basketball circles in 1932, his last year at Butler when he gained All-American ranking. For three years he was named to the Indiana All-State college five, 1930, 1931, 1932, and twice he captained Butler’s sensational teain.

Before his Butler days Tackett was named to the All-Indiana high school team, an honor he achieved in 1928. Mai-tinsville won the Indiana state high school championship in 1927, and was within forty second of capturing its Hoosier prep crown in 1928, only to lose to Muncie, 13-12, in what was the most dramatic finale in all Hoosier prep history. It was in the days of the center jump. Tackett lined up at center with his team leading, 12-11. The hall went up and Tackett went up with it, as did Secrist, Muncie center. Secrist had just enough extra height to grab the ball from Tackett. The Muncie center came down with the ball, whirled and let fly under Tackett’s arms. The ball went through without the rim and Muncie had dethroned Martinsville as the state’s high school champion., “It was a play that still causes me to have nightmares from time to time” said Mr. Tackett. One of Mr. Tackett’s teammates at Martinsville was Johnny Wooden, later an All-American at Purdue and now coach of U.C.L.A. After closing out his college career, Mr. Tackett played four years of professional basketball with the Indianapolis Kautskys, Fort Wayne General Electrics and Akron Firestones. He now confines his basketball to a spectator role, but his trim physique suggest that if Marshall Tackatt so chose he could step into a uniform and give better than an average performance. As be left the office, Marshall Tacket't, All-American of the basketball court and an All-Amer-ican in the Modesty League, adr monished us to remember that we asked for it. And we did. Mr. and Mrs. Paul Sekema, drove to Rockville, Ind., to visit Mrs. Ben Swart last Tuesday.