The basketball team's loss to Northeastern Tuesday, traumatic though it was, may have been a blessing in disguise.

Harvard's weaknesses were clearly underscored against the Huskies. But the defeat pointed out a strategy the Crimson can use tonight against Williams--and for the rest of the season.

Williams meets Harvard in the IAB at 8 p.m., and, as usual, the Crimson will face a serious rebounding problem. With two men who stand 6-6 and one at 6-4, Williams is about the size of Northeastern. The Huskies outrebounded Harvard, 41 to 20.

In the third period against Northeastern, Harvard had fallen seven points behind and looked ready to fall apart. But then the quintet began to employ a zone press and quickly piled up a six-point lead.

That seems to be Harvard's only hope to combat its height disadvantages--press, press, press. It is rather axiomatic that when the opposing team can't get the ball downcourt they can't score--and you don't have to worry about rebounds. Harvard has the manpower to execute an effective press, with guards Gene Dressler, George Neville, Bob Beller, and possibly Jeff Grate.

Coach Floyd Wilson has said he will probably employ a press tonight with small provocation, but it might be a good idea for the team to play forty minutes of pressing basketball. This seems to be the quintet's only hope for salvation, and it would be a good idea for the team to get plenty of practice using a press against weaker opposition before taking on the giants of the Ivy League.

No Powerhouse

Williams, to be sure, is no powerhouse. The Ephmen opened their season with a 66-59 win over Upsula, trimmed Union 76 to 49, and then lost to Trinity, 83 to 81.

The Ephs' leading scorer is Kevin Sheenan, a hefty 6-6, 220 pound center. His substitute, Bill Unterucker, also stands 6-6, and promising sophomore forward Bill Drummond is 6-4. The rest of Williams' lineup consists of 6-2 forward Tom McPherson, 5-8 sophomore guard Jim Kramer, and 6-0 guard Irv Blond.

Harvard will start its usual quintet of Keith Sedlacek, Barry Williams, John Scott, Dressler, and Neville. Sedlacek is currently the team's leading scorer with 63 points in three games. The Crimson should be able to win tonight if it can mitigate the rebounding problem and avoid any after-effects from Tuesday's frustrating loss.