Hoyas

Georgetown spent two days trying to escape from snowbound Washington. Then the Hoyas really got buried. Scoring star Allen Iverson was held to 12 points and host Pittsburgh hit six three-pointers during a decisive 31-6 run to upset the fifth-ranked Hoyas, 75-56, last night. Pitt (7-3, 2-1 Big East) hadn't beaten a team as highly rated as Georgetown since a 99-91 victory over No. 3 Oklahoma in 1988-89. "Our defense has been strong all year, and the only thing we haven't been doing well is shooting," Pitt coach Ralph Willard said.

For his next trick, Charles Smith will lock himself into a steamer trunk, have it lowered into the water, then try to escape. When Georgetown needed a touch of Houdini yesterday, coach John Thompson went searching for Smith, and the slender, 6-1 senior guard bailed the Hoyas out of another ticklish situation. Smith, who vanished Friday night in Georgetown's one-point victory over Princeton, rematerialized and scored 28 of his 34 points in the second half as the No. 1-seeded Hoyas rallied to defeat Notre Dame, 81-74, in a second-round East Regional game.

Georgetown was at its worst at the free throw line and tied a Big East Tournament record for turnovers. So the Hoyas went to a power dunk on a fast break to get an important win. Wesley Wilson's slam with 3.8 seconds to play gave Georgetown a 68-67 victory over Providence in yesterday's first-round game at Madison Square Garden in New York. Wilson's only basket in the final 10 minutes came on a nice pass from freshman Drew Hall. It allowed the Hoyas (19-10) to move into the quarterfinals against No. 20 Miami (23-6)

Big East commissioner Dave Gavitt has been out of coaching for eight years, but he still knows something about recruiting. After Danny Manning, Kansas' All-America forward, put on a sparkling performance against the Soviets in a preseason exhibition, Gavitt began recruiting the versatile 6-11 junior for the 1988 Olympics. Gavitt, the 1980 Olympic coach, urged Manning to stay in school another year, and suggested that Manning and Navy's David Robinson could be the cornerstones of the U.S. team in Seoul, South Korea.

It was supposed to be a dress rehearsal, but the curtain almost fell on Georgetown in the first act of this already wild and crazy NCAA Basketball Tournament. The No. 2-ranked Hoyas squeezed out a 50-49 victory over Princeton's 16th- seeded Ivy League champions last night in the first round of the East Regional at the Providence Civic Center. Georgetown (27-4), the Big East champion and the No. 1 seed in the region, needed a monster effort from 6-10 freshman phenom Alonzo Mourning to stay alive.

Two of Delaware County's better high school athletes have announced their college plans. Brian Fili, Upper Darby's three-sport star, made an oral commitment yesterday to pitch for Villanova's baseball team next season. The 5-foot, 7-inch lefthander, who is considered one of the three top pitchers in the area, chose the Wildcats over East Carolina, Richmond and Siena. This spring, Fili is 2-1 with a 1.00 ERA. Fili set school records of 3,026 total yards and 43 touchdowns in two seasons for the Royals' football team and averaged 10 points a game as a starting guard for the Royals' basketball team last season.

Barring a twist of fate, the Big East outdoor track and field championships that open today at Villanova should prove to be a rerun of the conference indoor meet contested three months ago. As their rivals assuredly remember, the Big East under cover was won by Georgetown and Villanova, with elegant performances and remarkable ease. In the men's competition, the Hoyas rampaged their way to their second team title in two seasons by scoring 149 1/2 points, a Big East record.

SENIOR HENRY Sims and freshman Otto Porter each scored 20 points to lead No. 13 Georgetown to a 64-52 victory over Pittsburgh in one of four second-round Big East Tournament games at Madison Square Garden in New York yesterday. Sims grabbed 13 rebounds for the fifth-seeded Hoyas (23-7). Ashton Gibbs had 14 points for the 13th-seeded Panthers (17-16). Pitt needed to win the Big East to keep alive its string of 10 straight NCAA Tournament appearance. "Yeah, it's tough," said Pitt's Nasir Robinson, who starred at Chester High.

On paper, Parkway looked like a contender. Then the Hoyas went a few rounds with the champ and discovered that they were simply sparring partners. Frankford, the Public League's defending titlist, warmed up for its toughest week since the start of the league season by beating Parkway, 73-49, at home Thursday afternoon. The Hoyas, unbeaten in the Public League before Thursday, might have expected a better showing, but they rarely laid a glove on the Pioneers. A trio of 3-pointers helped Parkway (4-1 league, 9-6 overall)

They could have wilted under the pressure of what was being treated unfairly as a rematch of last year's national championship game. They could have melted away after 12th-ranked Georgetown cruised to a 28-10 lead midway through the first half. But they didn't. The Villanova Wildcats are not about to roll over and play dead for anybody in the Big East. The Wildcats (12-8, 4-2) dramatically came back to life after a disastrous first 10 minutes last night. They pushed the Hoyas to the limit before finally collapsing from exhaustion, 76-72, in front of a crowd of 11,541 at the Capital Centre.

Germantown Academy grad Maggie Lucas scored 30 points, and fourth-seeded Penn State moved on to the third round of the women's NCAA tournament with a 90-80 victory over No. 5 seed LSU on Tuesday night in Baton Rouge, La.  Ariel Edwards scored 15 points and Mia Nickson had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Lions (26-6), who will play Connecticut on Sunday in the regional semifinals. That game will be the first third-round appearance for fifth-year Penn State coach Coquese Washington.  LaSondra Barrett had 18 points and 12 rebounds for LSU (23-11)

COLUMBUS, Ohio - It's been a long time since North Carolina State was mentioned in the same breath with the elite programs in the nation - let alone its own state. Now, a new coach and a new attitude have the Wolfpack faithful harkening back to the glory days of David Thompson and Jim Valvano. Lorenzo Brown hit three free throws in the final 10.6 seconds and 11th-seeded North Carolina State returned to the round of 16 with a 66-63 upset of third-seeded Georgetown in the NCAA tournament on Sunday.

IT'S BEEN A long time since North Carolina State was mentioned in the same breath with the elite programs in the nation, let alone in its own state. Now, a new coach and a new attitude have the Wolfpack faithful harkening back to the glory days of David Thompson and Jim Valvano. Lorenzo Brown hit three free throws in the final 10.6 seconds and the Wolfpack returned to the Round of 16 with a 66-63 upset of third-seeded Georgetown in the NCAA Tournament's Midwest regional yesterday at Columbus, Ohio.

  Getting into the NCAA tournament is the hard part for North Carolina State. Winning a first game? Not that difficult, apparently. Richard Howell doubled his average with 22 points as 11th-seeded North Carolina State used its muscle inside and sticky defense to upset No. 6 seed San Diego State, 79-65, in a second-round East Regional game Friday at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The Wolfpack (23-12) advances to play the winner of Georgetown on Sunday. Lorenzo Brown added 17 points, C.J. Leslie 15, and Scott Wood 10 for the Wolfpack, who are now 12-5 in their first NCAA games.

YANCY GATES and his 260 pounds rumbled up and down the floor for 46 minutes in another multiple-overtime classic at the Big East Tournament. The Cincinnati senior was still such a force in the second overtime yesterday that the Georgetown defense swarmed to him on the Bearcats' final possession, freeing Cashmere Wright to hit the winning shot in a 72-70 quarterfinal victory over the 13th-ranked Hoyas at Madison Square Garden in New York....

SENIOR HENRY Sims and freshman Otto Porter each scored 20 points to lead No. 13 Georgetown to a 64-52 victory over Pittsburgh in one of four second-round Big East Tournament games at Madison Square Garden in New York yesterday. Sims grabbed 13 rebounds for the fifth-seeded Hoyas (23-7). Ashton Gibbs had 14 points for the 13th-seeded Panthers (17-16). Pitt needed to win the Big East to keep alive its string of 10 straight NCAA Tournament appearance. "Yeah, it's tough," said Pitt's Nasir Robinson, who starred at Chester High.

Connecticut kept a great story going Wednesday, and West Virginia closed a chapter of its basketball history at the Big East tournament. Shabazz Napier scored 26 points and Jeremy Lamb added 22 to lead the Huskies to their 13th straight postseason win, 71-67, in overtime over the Mountaineers at Madison Square Garden in New York. The victory kept alive the hopes of a second straight Big East title for the Huskies (20-12), who won a record five games in as many days last year and then went on to win six more in earning the school's third national championship.

WE'RE MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO: Seeing if Syracuse can be as dominant in this tournament as it was in the regular season. Especially since what it does in the next tourney is what everyone is obviously going to remember most. The Orange are only the second team to go 17-1 in the conference (joining Connecticut, in 1995-96). Interestingly, those Huskies also won the Big East Tournament but were upset in the third round of the NCAAs by Mississippi State. Syracuse, though, after going 12-6 and losing to UConn in the Big East semifinals, then made it to the national title game before losing to Kentucky.

PLAYING AT home for the last time, Jason Clark and Henry Sims combined for 25 points, 12 rebounds and six assists on "Senior Day," helping No. 11 Georgetown beat No. 20 Notre Dame, 59-41, last night in a key game for Big East Tournament seeding. Clark finished with 13 points and six rebounds, while Sims had 12 points and five assists. While they have led the way all season for Georgetown (22-6, 12-5) on a roster with 10 freshmen and sophomores, there was plenty of help from the youngsters, as usual.

Villanova celebrated Senior Night at the Pavillion with a 68-60 win over Syracuse. With the win, the Wildcats improved to 16-13 overall and 6-10 in the Big East, while the Orange fell to 17-13, 6-10. Villanova will be the No. 10 seed in the Big East tournament and will face No. 15 Seton Hall on Friday. Senior Lindsay Kimmel was hot in the first 20 minutes for Villanova. She finished the first half 5 for 5 on three-pointers for 15 points. Notre Dame 72, Connecticut 59 - The No. 3 Irish (28-2, 15-1 Big East)