The Crimson cagers ushered in the home season at the IAB last night with a 59-49 win over the City College of New York, as the hoopsters never relinquished the lead after the opening minutes of play.

Harvard barraged CCNY with a 12-point tear in the first half that sent the Beavers reeling. City shot under 50 per cent from the floor for the second half as the rag-tag Beaver quintet had to gun from the perimeter.

Crimson pivotman Steve Irion and sophomore Bob Hooft both pumped in seven field goals to lead all scorers while supplying the muscle on the boards in a physical fracas. Irion sat out much of the second half with four personal fouls while Hooft picked up his fifth with 22 seconds left to play, but Beaver big man Hugo Bonard was also in foul trouble throughout.

Irion uncorked the first whiff of grape shot when he opened the game with a three-point play. A tip-in by CCNY's blue chip guard Rich Silvera gave the New Yorkers an 8-7 lead until Jonas Honick pulled the trigger on a straightaway jumper to ease the Crimson into the lead.

Irion found the mark on a 15-footer to make it 13-10 Harvard and then threaded a backdoor pass to Gary Ackerman for a four-point margin with 13:15 left in the half.

The Crimson fusillade began in earnest when Irion fired through a jumper, followed by a Hooft corner fadeaway. Both then drilled home in-close field goals to make the score 23-11.

Walt Kelly in Short Pants

Hooft, who finished the night with 16 points, netted a hanging jumper to up the lead to ten before CCNY guard Ken "Pogo" Collins's twisting drive made it 25-19.

Honick converted on a three-point play after connecting from the perimeter, but the Beavers' Mike Baize strung back-to-back baskets to close out the half at 34-25.

The quick CCNY quintet came out pressing in the second half, forcing Harvard to commit a slew of turnovers. Both squads spent most of the half scrambling for loose balls as center court looked like a grabfest between gregarious octopi.

City peppered away at the Crimson lead at the start of the half as Bonar and Silvera netted carom shots and Baize dropped a corner jumper to cut the lead to 34-32.

Hill and Hooft volleyed baskets after Bonar sat down with his fourth personal and the gap climbed to 45-38. Ackerman followed up an offensive rebound and Honick and Hill popped from the left side to up it to 53-54.

Hooft put the game out of reach when he rammed home a rebound with 1:50 left to play and streamed the length of the court to round out the cagers' scoring.

"We weren't as strong as we should have been," coach Satch Sanders said afterwards. "You have to control a quick, running team like that." The hoopsters did just that as they rattled off a scoring skein of their own every time the Beavers threatened.

The Crimson host the Fordham Rams, under new coach Dick Stewart, tonight to close out the New York double bill at the IAB.