Bill Bradley looked almost mortal, but Princeton's basketball team defeated Harvard, 82 to 72, Saturday night in the IAB.

Harvard played on even terms with the Tigers for more than half the game, but with 13 minutes left Princeton began to pull away. Leading only 45-42 at that point, the Tigers rolled up the score to 66-48 in the next seven minutes. Bradley scored only four points during that surge, but his passing set up at least half of the Princeton scores.

Slightly hobbled by a leg injury, Bradley hit an unspectacular nine of 19 field goal attempts plus six foul shots for 24 points. He was outscored by the Crimson's Keith Sedlacek, who piled up 30 points. This was the third time in four head-to-head meetings between the two players that Sedlacek outscored the Tiger All-American.

Bradley did not look like the best basketball player in the country Saturday, and he didn't look much like a Sunday School teacher either. Guarding the Crimson's Barry Williams in the high post, he gave Williams a physical working-over that would have done credit to a member of the switch-blade crowd in a New York slum. He pushed, shoved, and held mercilessly, and used his elbow like a jackknife.

Princeton led at the half, 30 to 29, with Bradley accounting for half the Tigers' points. But the contest was close throughout the first 20 minutes of play; Sedlacek and Merle McClung were both shooting well, and neither team ever led by more than four points.

But Harvard collapsed during the second half, because of a combination of factors. Merle McClung had collected three personal fouls in the first half, so Crimson coach Floyd Wilson shifted to a zone defense--and Princeton ripped it apart. Harvard's quintet was tiring, since Wilson had neglected to do any substituting in the first half.

Last Gasp

After Princeton had pulled in front 68 to 50, Harvard made one abortive last gasp. Sedlacek hit two long jump shots; then after a Princeton basket McClung bucketed one of his Over-the-Head Specials and Bill Fegley swished a 25-footer. With the score 70-60, Gene Dressier cannily stole the ball from Bradley, raced downcourt, took a jump shot from the foul circle--and blew it. That ended the rally.

The loss dropped Harvard into fifth place in the Ivy League with a 4-7 record, through the quintet still has a good chance to finish in the first division for the first time in 18 years.