Crimson Hoopsters Fall to Tiger Quintet in 40-25 Tilt

PRINCETON, N. J., March 10--Princeton's basketball team clinched second place in the Eastern Intercollegiate League tonight by coasting to a 40-25 victory over Harvard.

The victory, Princeton's eighth against three losses in the League, avenged a 36-32 setback administered by the Crimson at Cambridge last month. Harvard remains in sixth place with four wins and seven losses.

The Tigers opened fast against a bewildered Crimson defense and rolled up a 12-1 lead in the first five minutes. George Dillon flipped in a shot from the side for the first Harvard goal after eight minutes had gone.

With Bud Palmer setting the pace, the Tigers ran the count to 21-13 at half time. A foul by Dean Hennessey and a layup by Hugh Hyde in the last minute of the half, helped close the gap. Frank Bixler, who led the Harvard scoring with 10 points, started a brief Crimson rally in the second half after the Tigers had widened their advantage to 26-14. Bixler sandwiched three layup shots between a pair of fouls by Hyde and Dan Shields, but Palmer and his mates applied the pressure once again.

With three minutes left, Bill Logan, Princeton coach, threw his reserves into the game. The subs managed one two-pointer and a foul while Dan Shields was converting a free toss for the Crimson. Palmer tallied 18 points to remain in the running for League scoring honors.

Red Rolfe, Yale coach, was in the stands, compiling statistics on Harvard's play in preparation for Saturday's Eli-Crimson game. The Harvard summary:     G  F  P Bixler, f  5  0  10 Hennessey, f  0  2  2 Shields, f  0  2  2 Hyde, c  2  3  7 Forster, c  0  0  0 Dillon, g  2  0  4 Moley, g  0  0  0 Torgan, g  0  0  0 Richards, g  0  0  0     --  --  -- Totals  9  7  25