With the winter House athletic season entering the home stretch, Kirkland looks like a good bet to increase its slim 5 1/2 point lead in the Straus Trophy race.

The main cause for the wave of optimism in "that building next to Eliot House" seems to be the 1964 edition of the Kirkland "A" basketball team, currently leading the league with a perfect 10-0 mark.

Right on the Deacons' heels are Winthrop, 9-1, and Quincy, 8-2, but both were far back in the fall point standings. The eventual league winner should be determined in the next seven days, when both these quintets have a shot at the leader.

The key game of the campaign so far is Kirkland's 48-45 win over Winthrop. The Puritans trailed by two and had the ball with only 15 seconds left, but lost the ball and the game to an alert Deacon defense just before time ran out.

Winthrop center Bob Benson vows revenge in next Wednesday's rematch with the Kirkland five, and with a stellar performance from Tom Suephenson, the House league's Bill Bradley, the Puritans could pull it off.

Quincy has dropped games to both Kirkland and Winthrop, but behind the rebounding of mammoth Neal Cartin, Bill Bremner, Frank Ulcickas, and Dave Losk, the Quins just might avenge both defeats before the season's end. George Campbell and Jim Moorhead provide the quality of ball-handling that forced Winthrop to the wire earlier this month in a one-point decision.

But the over-all balance and excellent organization that seems to characterize all Kirkland House teams gives them the nod for the league title. Sophomore David Taft, who one observer said "ranks right behind Keith Sedlacek among the back-court men at Harvard," and senior center Jon Cook provide a healthy combination of flash and stability seldom seen on the House hardwood.

In the "B" league, the Quincy five is currently holding down first place with a 7-1 mark. Leverett and Winthrop follow at 6-2, with Eliot House, 8-3, in fourth.

Hockey play-offs among the top six teams begin soon among Leverett, winner during the regular season with a 7-1 record, Kirkland, Eliot, Dunster, Adams, and Winthrop.

Lowell is the best of the "A" squash teams and second best to Dunster in the "B" league. Dunster, Kirkland, and Eliot appear to be the top three in the swimming league.