By Milt Hartsell
It’s still too early to say for sure that the Texarkana College Bulldogs will have a successful season. But this year’s edition of the Canines, after their first five games, are virtually assured of bettering last season’s record.
Last year Texarkana managed to win only six games during the season. But under the guidance of Coach Tom Collins, the Bulldogs won their first three starts of the season before falling to the University of Arkansas freshman team. They also won their fifth contest and entered Texas Eastern Conference competition Monday, Dec. 12, with a 4-1 record.
The loss to the Arkansas freshmen ended a personal winning streak for Coach Collins, in his first year at the helm. He had won 35 consecutive games, dating back to 1959 when his Linden-Kildare Tigers lost in the high school Class A regional tournament in Denton.
But although his winning streak ended, the Bulldog coach had plenty of reasons to be happy. One is guard Carl Allen, a 5-11 sharpshooter who took over where he left off last year.
In the Bulldogs’ first five games, which included victories over Panola and Beebe and a pair of wins over Jacksonville Baptist, Allen averaged 22.2 points per game.
He figured in 25 in the opener against Panola, which the Bulldogs won 76-62. But able assistance was given by center Alton Weiner, who scored 15, Donnie King with 12 and Bennie Davis who contributed 10.
Davis, Weiner and forward Jack Warren also controlled the backboards in that game, each gathering in more than 10 rebounds.
The Bulldogs opened the home season against a highly-rated Beebe team and waltzed away with a 71-45 victory. Freshman guard Donnie King continued to give an outstanding performance and took scoring honors with 16 points. Allen added 13 and Weiner contributed 11 as the Canines were in command all the way.
When the Bulldogs beat Jacksonville 96-69 at Tiger Gym, Allen reached the peak of his form. The dazzling sophomore ripped the nets for 14 field goals and 14 free throws, a 43-point total. King scored in the double figure for his third straight game and the Texarkana forwards and Weiner continued to dominate the blackboards.
But against the University of Arkansas freshmen, the Bulldogs suffered their first bad night. That night they couldn’t hit from the floor, couldn’t rebound, and lost the ball time and time again, allowing the Choats to come out on the big end of a 62-30 score. Allen managed 11 points that night and he was the only Bulldog in the double figures.
In the Canines’ final game before beginning conference play, they suffered another cold night from the field and ran into slow referee’s whistle and barely