Boston College is on its way to becoming a national basketball power, but for at least 30 minutes tonight at Roberts Center the Crimson quintet will give them a battle.

Harvard can probably shoot better than B.C. and can rebound as well, and the Crimson's ball handling is only slightly inferior. But the Eagles love to run, run, and run some more, and if their fast break enervates the Harvard five, those last ten minutes will be decisive.

The Eagles' growth as a basketball powerhouse was inevitable when Bob Cousy, the magnificent guard of the Boston Celtics and one of the all-time greats of the game, was named B.C.'s coach a year ago. Cousy, needless to say, has the savvy to develop fine basketball players, and his presence at the school will lure many high school stars to B.C. who want the experience of playing under the "Cooz."

But the finest player Cousy will be coaching for many years was already on the team when he arrived at B.C. John Austin, a 6 ft. guard, averaged 28 points per game last season, and is scoring at the rate of 31 a game this year. Austin is a fabulous ball handler, and his shooting is so good that even the Celtics are mighty interested.

Behind Austin, B.C. has compiled a 3-1 record this season. They tromped Dartmouth 104-76, beat a good George-town team 89-81, and whipped New York University, 102-84. On Saturday night the Eagles had an "off" night and bowed to Connecticut, 85-81 in overtime. (Last Wednesday, Harvard lost to UConn, 78-62.)

Though Austin gets all the publicity, the Eagles entire starting lineup is solid. Willie Wolters, a 6 ft. 8 in center, is the lone big man on the Eagles' starting five; he is averaging nine points and 12 rebounds per game. The forwards are Ed Hockenbury and Doug Hice; both stand 6 ft. 2 in. and both are averaging about 10 points a game. Bob Furbush, who is scoring at a seven-point a game rate, plays opposite Austin at guard.

Although there is only one man above 6 ft. 2 in. on the starting five, Cousy's squad does not lack height. Not many coaches can afford the luxury of leaving two 6 ft. 5 in. players and one who stands 6 ft. 8 in. on the bench, but Cousy puts such an emphasis on speed and all-around ability that he prefers a good little man to a reasonably good big man.

Coach Floyd Wilson will start his usual contingent of Merle McClung, Barry Williams, Keith Sedlacek, Leo Scully, and Gene Dressler.

The Crimson's shooting this season has been simply amazing. In the 101-83 victory over Brandeis in the IAB Saturday, the squad sank 55 per cent of its shots, and the starting five connected on an unbelievable 72 per cent from the floor. Dressler in particular has done an outstanding job of shooting in every game.

McClung and Williams, though they stand only 6 ft. 5 in. and 6 ft. 4 in. respectively, are good rebounders. The team's ball handling is quite competent; Scully, Sedlacek, and Dressler have not been in the least ruffled by a press while the Crimson's press has been highly effective.

Yet these abilities were not enough against Connecticut. Harvard performed well, tied the score at 59 all with 8:38 to play, and then collapsed. The starting five played almost the entire game without relief, and then ran out of gas in the late stages.

For this reason, the chances for a Harvard victory lie not with the usual headline makers, but with two juniors who have spent most of the season on the bench: John Scott and Bill Fegley.

Scott, a 6 ft. 4 in. forward, demonstrated against Brandeis that he is capable of substituting for Williams or McClung; in that game he sank eight of eleven field goal attempts. Fegley, a guard, has a good jump shot and is an excellent ball handler.

Wilson absolutely must play Scott and Fogley a good part of the time, so that the starting five is not prostrate on the floor of Roberts Center with a few minutes to play. It is better to have the quintet function slightly below their optimum level of performance through most of the game than to have a repetition of the collapse against UConn.

If Scott and Fegley come through, and the starting five turns in its anticipated fine performance, Harvard has a real chance to upset the Eagles.