THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 3, 1996 TAG: 9603030208
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LANDOVER, MD. LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines
It was senior day at USAir Arena, and Georgetown's cheerleaders printed up T-shirts bidding farewell to seniors Jerome Williams and Othella Harrington, who were playing their final home games.
Should they have run off one bidding goodbye to sophomore Allen Iverson as well? Only time will tell. But with the current trend of underclassmen bolting for the NBA, there's at least a chance that the dynamic guard from Hampton may have played his last game in a Georgetown uniform at USAir.
If so, it was not a bad way to go out. Iverson scored 37 points and grabbed eight rebounds as No. 8 Georgetown dismantled No. 6 Villanova 106-68 in front of a capacity crowd of 19,035.
With about five minutes left in the game, members of Georgetown's student section did their best to influence their star guard's upcoming decision, chanting ``Two more years! Two more years!'' after Iverson scored on a typically spectacular drive.
Iverson said afterward he didn't hear the chant.
``My teammates were telling me,'' he said. ``I didn't even hear it.
``I don't really know how to react,'' Iverson added. ``After the season is over, I've got a lot of big decisions to make.''
Hoyas coach John Thompson heard the chant, and did react. Thompson appeared to yell ``Shut up'' to the students, although a couple of minutes later he tossed one of his trademark towels in their direction, providing one thrilled student with instant Hoya memorabilia.
After the game, Thompson expressed frustration over media and fan speculation that Iverson could declare for the NBA draft.
``I doubt it. I doubt it,'' Thompson said.
The way Iverson played Saturday, Villanova (24-5, 14-4) must have wished the 6-foot point guard had already gone pro. Iverson hit 11 of 21 shots and had three steals in 35 minutes.
The Wildcats were without star Kerry Kittles, who is serving a suspension for improper use of a telephone credit card. But coach Steve Lappas said Kittles would not have made a difference.
``We could have had Shaq and Magic Johnson and anybody else,'' Lappas said. ``This game was not about Kerry Kittles, or anybody else.''
It was about a suffocating Georgetown defense that forced Villanova into 42 percent shooting. The Hoyas (24-6, 13-5) also outrebounded Villanova 47-28 in piling up the most points scored against the Wildcats in 22 years. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Allen Iverson, who scored 37 points, celebrates during the closing
minutes of the game next to coach John Thompson.
by CNB