Georgetown University

In her first commencement address as the nation's first lady, Laura Bush promoted nursing and public service Saturday but counseled newly minted Georgetown University graduates to take time for themselves and "order a full-fat latte." Bush, who cultivates a noncontroversial profile, gave a speech light on public policy and long on personal anecdote, advice and praise for the graduating class.

The Rev. Richard T. McSorley, a Jesuit priest, retired professor of peace studies at Georgetown University and writer of eight books on pacifism and social justice, has died. He was 88. McSorley died Thursday at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C. He had coronary artery disease. An intellectual and an activist committed to pacifism, McSorley lived in the lofty world of ideas and debate as well as the dissident one of public protest against what he saw as rampant U.S. militarism.

This is the neighborhood battle. Third-seeded Maryland versus 10th-seeded Georgetown. Juan Dixon versus Kevin Braswell. Lonny Baxter versus Mike Sweetney. Terence Morris versus Nathaniel Burton. Kids who have grown up together, hooped it up on the playground, been teammates in Amateur Athletic Union ball, stayed friends for life. That's the first part of Thursday's first NCAA West Regional semifinal at the Arrowhead Pond.

It was the basketball that brought them together, that helped introduce two middle school kids who were trying to stay out of trouble and who couldn't always manage. But the friendship that has developed, that has grown stronger even when each went to different high schools and different colleges, that friendship comes from deep inside, from the heart and not from the crossover dribble.

The two teams don't play each other much. Maryland and Georgetown have met twice since 1980 and one of those meetings was in the NCAA tournament. But here they are, the Terrapins and Hoyas--two teams filled with kids who grew up together, two teams whose home courts are 15 miles apart--traveling 3,000 miles to play in Anaheim. Thanks, NCAA. And for both Maryland, seeded No. 3 in the West, and Georgetown, seeded No. 10, the tournament has a redemptive feel. Maryland's season seemed lost on Jan.

Key Players for Teams That Will Play in West Regional at Arrowhead Pond JUAN DIXON, MARYLAND The Terrapins' tournament history indicates they will get bogged down at the Pond, but Dixon might be the Juan to change that. The 6-foot-3, 153-pound guard takes on all comers in fearless drives to the basket, combining that with a deft outside shooting touch to average a team-high 18.4 points.

Georgetown University broke with tradition Thursday to select a president who is not a Jesuit priest, a first for the nation's oldest Roman Catholic university. Officials will announce today that Senior Vice President John J. DeGioia, an alumnus who has spent his entire career at Georgetown, will succeed Leo J. O'Donovan, a Jesuit priest, when he retires in June after 12 years as president. "I'm very excited to lead this university," DeGioia said in a telephone interview Thursday night.

This isn't your big, bad Georgetown anymore. There's no Patrick Ewing throwing down a thunderous dunk in a defender's face, no Alonzo Mourning scowling a warning to stay out of his paint, no Dikembe Mutombo blocking shots in a way that ridicules opponents for even trying. The Georgetown of today doesn't have any megastars. But after years of mediocrity, the Hoyas may again be the beast of the East. No. 11 Seton Hall became Georgetown's 13th consecutive victim Saturday.

The Rev. Robert B. Lawton on Tuesday became the 14th president of Loyola Marymount University, the largest Roman Catholic university in Southern California. Lawton, a Jesuit priest as were all his predecessors, took the reins of the 5,000-student university during an inauguration ceremony that included videotaped greetings from Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan and several celebrities, among them "Tonight Show" host Jay Leno.

In a further sign of Islam's growth in the United States, Georgetown University, the nation's oldest Roman Catholic university, has appointed its first Muslim chaplain. School officials said they believe Yahya Hendi, who will be one of more than 30 chaplains at the college, is also the first Muslim chaplain at any major university in the nation. Georgetown, located in Washington, D.C., has a growing "self-identified" Muslim student population.