Watching the 1987-'88 Harvard men's basketball team is a lot like reading a suspenseful murder novel. You know it will be exciting, but you're not quite sure how it will turn out.

No one seems to know how good, or how bad, the Crimson will be this year. Not Sherlock Holmes, and not even Harvard Coach Pete Roby.

Men's Basketball

1986-'87 Overall: 9-17

1986-'87 Ivy League: 4-10 (T-seventh)

Captains: Kyle Dodson, Mike Gielen, Bill Mohler

"This team is a mystery to me," the third-year coach said before the season. "I have no idea what to expect. That's neither negative or positive, that's just a fact."

The first two games of the season aren't a good indication of the team, either. Only a great detective could tell whether Harvard is the team that lost miserably, 105-60, to the St. John's Redmen in the season opener, or the team that bounced back for a come-from-behind 87-83 victory over Tennessee Tech the next afternoon.

The team's true identity is a mystery. Last season, the Crimson relied heavily on Co-Captains Arne Duncan and Keith Webster--both career 1000-point scorers--for offense and leadership. Now Duncan and Webster are gone, and new leaders must emerge for Harvard to challenge for its first-ever Ivy title.

One thing is for certain, though. The team's full-court pressure defensive scheme and aptly nicknamed scoot-'n-shoot running game will make things exciting.

If it works--like it did against the Golden Eagles--the scampering Crimson defenders will cause a lot of turnovers, and make a lot of steals. If it doesn't--like it didn't against the Redmen--the Crimson will give up a lot of spectacular slam dunks.

Tri-Captain Mike Gielen appears to be the spark for the Crimson. The junior point guard missed the season opener against the Redmen, and without him the Crimson press was lackluster and the squad shot a miserable 29.5 percent.

When Gielen returned the next day, he was all over Tech point guard Anthony Avery, and forced eight turnovers. Offensively, Gielen scored 14 points, including three three-pointers, and handed out 10 assists.

"Mike gave us a spurt offensively," Roby said after his squad finished third at the St. John's tourney. "He's a shooting threat, so he takes some of the heat off of the other guys."

Gielen averaged 10.2 points-per-game last year, and led the Crimson in assists with 106. Gielen's tenacity on defense must also be contagious for the Crimson.