Soviet Basketball Team Might Not Face Varsity

A dispute between the United States Amateur Athletic Union and sports promoter Frank Walsh may bring about a cancellation of the Russian National basketball team's scheduled tour, it was learned yesterday.

Daniel Ferris, the Secretary of the National A.A.U., said in New York yesterday that his group had not sent a formal invitation to the Soviet Union, and unless one is sent, the State Department will not issue visas to the Russians.

Claiming that Walsh, in arranging the tour, went against the instructions of the A.A.U., Ferris said his group has twice voted against extending an invitation to the Russians, and in effect, has temporarily rejected Walsh's project.

This latest development came to light yesterday upon publication of the proposed tour, set to begin at Springfield College, Dec. 1, and continue through Harvard, North Carolina State, Butler, and Kentucky. Although Walsh has said that all profits from the trip would go to the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, the A.A.U. has so far refused him authorization.

A high-ranking member of the State Department in Washington, who asked that his name be withheld, said the government would not allow the Russians into the country unless the A.A.U. gives a green light. "We cannot admit them now," he said, "because Walsh has not gone through the right channels in arranging the tour." By "right channels," he presumably meant the A.A.U.