COLLEGE BASKETBALL / PRESEASON NIT : Georgetown Sputters but Wins Going Away

It took 10 minutes for Georgetown’s new high-octane offense to get into gear. Then Allen Iverson made a steal, and a freshman guard did the rest.

Victor Page scored 18 points in his debut and center Othella Harrington led Georgetown with 21 as the fifth-ranked Hoyas sped past Colgate, 106-57, Thursday night in the first round of the Preseason NIT at Landover, Md.

Boasting a host of speedy guards, Georgetown Coach John Thompson unveiled a much- anticipated high-tempo game. There were several turnovers and blown defensive assignments in the early going before a series of plays around the 10-minute mark turned the game around.

“I told them we need to stop making highlight films and start making sensible plays,” said Thompson, whose team committed 22 turnovers. “We’ve got a lot of athletic people who can do colorful things, but you’re not going to win tough ballgames being pretty.”

The turning point came when Iverson, who had 11 points and five steals, made a layup after a backcourt steal to close the score to 21-20 with 9:58 to go in the half. The Red Raiders then had to use a timeout when they couldn’t get the ball inbounds, had trouble getting off a shot and lost the ball on a turnover. Harrington came back the other way with a layup to give Georgetown a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

Malik Cupid led Colgate with 15 points.

Temple 65, Rider 62--Marc Jackson scored 17 points and the Owls overcame a 34-point performance by the Broncos’ Charles Smith in a victory at Philadelphia.

The Owls held a 51-38 lead with nine minutes left, but Rider went on a 20-7 run. Smith scored the final six points of the run to make it, 58-58, at the 4:13 mark before Temple pulled away for good.