𝙈𝘼𝙍𝘾𝙀𝙇𝙊 𝙂𝙐𝙏𝙄𝙀𝙍𝙍𝙀𝙕~𝘼 𝙇𝙀𝙂𝙀𝙉𝘿 𝙊𝙉 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘾𝙊𝙐𝙍𝙏, 𝘽𝙍𝙊𝙒𝙉𝙎𝙑𝙄𝙇𝙇𝙀'𝙎 𝙁𝙄𝙍𝙎𝙏 𝙃𝙊𝙉𝙊𝙍𝘼𝘽𝙇𝙀 𝙈𝙀𝙉𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉 𝘼𝙇𝙇-𝙏𝙀𝙓𝘼𝙎 𝘽𝘼𝙎𝙆𝙀𝙏𝘽𝘼𝙇𝙇 𝙋𝙇𝘼𝙔𝙀𝙍

 

by Rene Torres

Marcelo Gutierrez

Marcelo Gutierrez was the cornerstone of the 1959 Brownsville Eagles basketball team as the talented center dominated his position and was among the best in the state.

With an average of 15.4 points per game, he tossed 165 field goals and 55 free throws for 385 points in 27 games.

While Kareen Adul-Jabbar had his patent “skyhook,” Gutierrez also had a beautiful hook shot that he consistently kissed off the board. 

A tireless hard worker, who stayed after practice for extra drills. Marcelo admitted that “at times I was given the keys to the gym which allowed me to work without interruptions.”

Marcelo credited Coach Jack Loff for teaching him how to become a more versatile player and it was under the personal tutelage of Loff that he mastered his own weapon, a hook shot used equally with both hands.

Considered to be tall for the period, Gutierrez, at 6-2, was the quiet leader of the team that led the Eagles to a 17-10 season while scoring 192 points in 11 games of district play for a 17.3 average.

Still, Marcelo “Goose” Gutierrez was joined by another scoring machine, Ed Dominguez, a point guard, who used his two-hand set shot to come in second in scoring with an average of 10.3 per game for a total of 271 points.

Marcelo's Legendary Hook Shot

Other Eagles topping the 100 marks for the campaign were Manuel Saenz with 156 points, Dan Garza with 125 and Hector Solis with 113. Although the Eagles ended the season in third place, it was the best showing by an Eagle cage squad in years. 

Despite being hampered by an old football injury "Goose" Gutierrez, still had a memorable year being selected to the All-Texas Class AAAA honorable mention basketball team.

After high school, Gutierrez played college ball at Texas Southmost College, establishing a record of 41 points  per game, a mark that will be there forever.

The Eagles  back then, played in the era of the Converse tennis shoe on a venue with a squeaky floor and death spots, the old Brownsville High School Memorial Gym, with windows open to allow ventilation and bleachers with plenty of space for more fans.

Unlike today, there was no blaring “rap music,” just a tranquil environment where a bunch of hustling boys played a different brand of basketball for the love of the game. But, regardless of the given ambiance, it was the team’s passion, pride for the game and team play that was witnessed by this writer.