THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 5, 1994 TAG: 9408050734
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines
Allen Iverson, playing in his first organized basketball game in more than a year, scored 40 points in a Washington, D.C. summer league Thursday night.
Iverson, playing in the Kenner League at Georgetown University, had 30 in the first half, and led his team, The Tombs, to a 75-67 win.
It was Iverson's first appearance since his conviction last summer on three felony counts stemming from his involvement in a brawl in a Hampton bowling center.
Iverson, a former All-American at Bethel High, was jailed in September, but released in December when former Gov. Doug Wilder gave him a conditional pardon.
Under the terms of the clemency agreement, which was to expire Aug. 23, Iverson was not allowed to play organized basketball and had to abide by a nightly curfew.
But Tom Shuttleworth, Iverson's attorney, said that the agreement's expiration had been moved up.
``He's now under standard probation and parole conditions and (not playing basketball) is not one of those conditions,'' he said.
Like much involving Iverson lately, his appearance in Washington was clouded in secrecy.
Iverson told a friend Thursday that he was leaving for Washington and planned to play in the summer league at Georgetown University, a source close to him said.
But a coach at Georgetown, where Iverson has signed to play next season, denied Thursday night that Iverson would be playing.
``Those people are pulling your leg,'' said assistant coach Mel Reid.
Sources in Washington, however, confirmed Iverson's appearance.
There was some speculation that Iverson might have instead made his return in the Hampton Roads Pro-Am, at Lake Taylor High. Wayne Hoffler, executive director of the league, said that Sue Lambiotte, who runs a private math and reading center and has been tutoring Iverson, contacted him Monday and told him Iverson wanted to play in the league. Hoffler said he was concerned that Iverson's college eligibility might be jeopardized, and asked for a ruling from the NCAA.
The ruling took two days, and Hoffler said he was told Iverson opted for the Kenner League.
Iverson, who led Bethel to state titles in football and basketball in 1992-93, signed with Georgetown in April. But news of the signing was held until June.
After his release from the Newport News City Farm, Iverson enrolled in Richard Milburn High, an alternative high school for at-risk youths. He was scheduled to graduate in late July. by CNB