The star of the college basketball season at this early stage wears orange and plays for Syracuse. His name is Wesley Johnson.

Now, we interrupt this notebook briefly for some friendly advice to Iowa State coach Greg McDermott. Coach, whatever you do this season, do not allow yourself to watch Syracuse play on TV (that’s going to be difficult). Do not allow yourself to think what your lineup would be like with Craig Brackins and Johnson on the floor at the same time (pretty sure those Cyclones would be nationally ranked). In fact, don’t read the rest of this piece (that’s just for McDermott; everyone else please read on).

Wow. We remember Johnson wearing the Iowa State uniform and making an impression as a rookie back in 2007. We know McDermott did everything he could to keep Johnson in Ames. We know Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim has been telling everyone that Johnson could be a first-team All-Big East selection for the Orange.

But we weren’t ready for Johnson’s performance last week. He may be from tiny Corsicana, Texas, but Johnson obviously loves the bright lights of New York City. Syracuse took on two pretty good opponents in the 2K Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden and, with Johnson leading the way, the Orange waltzed past Cal and North Carolina to capture the tournament championship.

Johnson is 6-foot-7 and 198 pounds. He’s a wing player blessed with such a complete package that he can take control of a game in an instant. For Syracuse fans, there were comparisons to Carmelo Anthony before the season. That’s right, Carmelo Anthony.

Syracuse, picked to finish sixth in the Big East, dominated No. 4 North Carolina, 87-71, Friday night. Johnson had 25 points and eight rebounds.

“I told you so,” Boeheim told reporters after the game. “What have I been saying?”

Boeheim loves to rub it in when he’s right. Who can blame him? He’s off to a pretty good start this season too. Career victory No. 800 came against Albany in the season opener. Now the Orange are hitting the charts with a bullet, looking like a team that could take a run deep into the NCAA Tournament. All this after Syracuse became the laughing stock of college hoops with an exhibition loss to Division II LeMoyne a few weeks ago.

North Carolina coach Roy Williams joked Friday night that he would hate to play LeMoyne on a regular basis “if they are better than Syracuse.”

Of course that’s not true. But boy Syracuse was significantly underrated in the preseason and that is so obvious now. The coaches picked Syracuse sixth. So did a panel of 17 reporters who helped the Syracuse Post-Standard put together its preseason poll. The Orange came in behind Villanova, West Virginia, UConn, Georgetown and Louisville. On top of that, not one Syracuse player made the three All-Big East teams the reporters voted on for the Syracuse newspaper.

That poll was released Oct. 20 and there weren’t hanging chads to blame. People simply thought Syracuse would miss Jonny Flynn, Eric Devendorf and Paul Harris too much to do what the Orange are doing right now. Well, the departure of Devendorf is a blessing. The excitable, emotional and obnoxious Devendorf hit some big shots but a player with that kind of ego often gets in the way of team development.

No one player is going to replace Flynn, but right now Scoop Jardine and Brandon Triche are combining to give Syracuse good direction from the point. Arinze Onuaku and Rick Jackson continue to improve inside and they give Syracuse the experience and talent that many Big East teams don’t have along the frontline this season. Just call them formidable. Mix in the reliable outside shooting, the hustle and the heart of guard Andy Rautins and this Syracuse team has a solid foundation.

Syracuse is playing its 2-3 zone with tremendous confidence. Boeheim’s team has great length and coverage in the zone and the players have embraced it with the activity necessary to shut down potent offenses.

Then there’s Johnson. Don’t feel bad if his name fails to ring a bell. He was the second best freshman in the Big 12 back in 2007. But the top guy was Kevin Durant and he slightly overshadowed everyone else.

Did you know Johnson originally signed with UL-Monroe? He opted out of his letter and went to prep school after a coaching change at Monroe. Iowa State then beat out Charlotte and San Diego State for Johnson’s services.

Now he is being described as a late-bloomer. Guess so, but the bloom is getting really big now. Turn your eyes Coach McDermott.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Who else but Wesley Johnson of Syracuse? Johnson won MVP honors in the 2K Sports Classic, won by the Orange. Johnson hit 10 of 17 shots on the way to 25 points and eight rebounds in the championship game against North Carolina. One night before that, the transfer from Iowa State had 17 points and 11 rebounds against in a victory over Cal. Nobody had a better week.

FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK

Kentucky guard John Wall figures to occupy this space often this season. He had to sit out Kentucky’s opener on Nov. 13, but Wall made up for it with an extraordinary first week of play. In games against Miami (Ohio), Sam Houston and Rider, Wall averaged 20.3 points, 7.3 assists, 2.7 steals, shot 55.9 percent and helped the Wildcats to three wins.

GAMES OF THE WEEK

Monday, Nov. 23
Cincinnati vs. Vanderbilt
This is just one of the quarterfinal games from the EA Sports Maui Invitational. The other first-day games match Colorado vs. Gonzaga, Maryland vs. Chaminade and Arizona vs. Wisconsin. Cincinnati, with super freshman Lance Stephenson, will be an interesting team to watch in the Big East. Vandy is pretty excited about newcomer John Jenkins.

Tuesday, Nov. 24
O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic championship
The championship game from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., matches the winners from Monday’s two semifinal games: Wichita State vs. Pittsburgh and Texas vs. Iowa. The Longhorns are favored to win this preseason event so everyone will be watching to see if coach Rick Barnes has that 14-man rotation working for him. Texas is deep.

Wednesday, Nov. 25
EA Sports Maui Invitational championship
If you weren’t lucky enough to travel to Lahaina, put on a pair of shorts, a nice Hawaiian shirt, some flip-flops and just make believe as you watch on your flatscreen TV. This year’s field isn’t the strongest, but the final day in Maui always produces a classic game or two.

Thursday, Nov. 26
Creighton vs. Michigan
While you are waiting for the turkey to cook, you can be thankful that college basketball offers the Old Spice Classic from Orlando and the 76 Classic from Anaheim. Creighton coach Dana Altman leads his Blue Jays against a Michigan team that should compete for the Big Ten title this season in the first game from Orlando.

Friday, Nov. 27
Dick’s Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off
There’s a good chance the championship game from Madison Square Garden will pit old rivals Duke and UConn. To get to the title game, Duke will need to beat Arizona State and UConn must get past LSU on Wednesday. UConn has a special freshman in Alex Oriakhi.

Sunday, Nov. 29
Old Spice Classic and 76 Classic
Championship games in both events. Michigan (Old Spice) and West Virginia (76) could emerge as the champs. But both fields are solid.

THEY SAID IT:

“I can tell you this for sure: I’m 32 [years old] but I’m getting out [of coaching] at 35.” — First-year Memphis coach Josh Pastner after a 57-55 loss to No. 1 Kansas.

“It’s like Princeton because I was sitting on one bench, and Fran [Dunphy] was sitting on the other bench. Every other way, it’s not like Penn and Princeton.” — Georgetown coach John Thompson III after the Hoyas defeated Dunphy’s Temple team 46-45.

“They have no urgency defensively,” — Kentucky coach John Calipari after the Wildcats won a 102-92 shootout with Sam Houston State.

“You just didn’t want to be this team on this given day playing Michigan State University. It was kind of like a V-8 playing a V-4. Their engine ran faster and quicker than we did.” — Valparaiso coach Homer Drew after a 90-60 loss to Michigan State.

“It’s a game we have to play. Hopefully, it’s a game we win. I’m going there to win. I’m not going there for a homecoming. We can do homecoming stuff afterwards — if we win.” — Oklahoma coach Jeff Capel at Big 12 media day in October, talking about his return to Virginia Commonwealth. The Sooners lost at VCU, 82-69, Saturday. Capel’s contract mandated that he bring his new team back to Richmond to play when he left four years ago.

NOTES:

It seems the biggest mystery in college basketball remains the status of West Virginia’s Devin Ebanks. The star forward was not with the Mountaineers when they opened the season with an 83-60 victory over Loyola (Md.) and coach Bob Huggins would only say that his absence was due to “personal issues.” During a meeting with the media Friday, Huggins said he had no update on the sophomore’s status. And when asked if Ebanks would be available for any of this week’s games, Huggins said, “I don’t know.” West Virginia will be a participant in the 76 Classic in Anaheim, Calif. It isn’t clear whether Ebanks is in Morgantown or back home in Long Island, N.Y. The Mountaineers, expected to contend for the Big East Conference title, are less than complete without Ebanks but Huggins has other issues. Forward John Flowers, who injured an ankle in the opener, has been practicing but is not 100 percent. Joe Mazzulla, who figures to be the starting point guard, has shoulder problems that he can’t seem to shake. And freshman Deniz Kilicli won’t be available until February because of an NCAA suspension. Kilicli played in his native Turkey on a team that included a professional.

Evidently there will be no recruiting dropoff at Memphis, despite John Calipari’s departure to Kentucky. Coach Josh Pastner harvested a remarkable crop of talent in the fall signing period. The Tigers wound up with seven commits, including four top-100 prospects. At the top of the list was Will Barton of Baltimore, considered the top 2-guard in the class. Pastner also reeled in the No. 5 point guard, Joe Jackson. He didn’t have to go far for Jackson, who is a Memphis product. But keeping a big-time recruit at home is a major victory for the new coach. Pastner is off to an impressive start.

We know coach Roy Williams will always be part Tar Heel and part Jayhawk, but it seems he should be equally grateful to the state of Iowa. Williams has had incredible success recruiting that state. His latest prize came when talented wing prospect Harrison Barnes selected North Carolina over an impressive list of finalists. When Williams was coaching at Kansas, he plucked Raef LaFrentz, Nick Collison and Kirk Hinrich out of Iowa.

Larry Bird and Magic Johnson are already NBA Hall of Famers, but it was real nice they could go into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in Kansas City, Mo., together Sunday night. It can never be underestimated what those two did for the college game back in 1979.

Valparaiso has lost 28 straight games to Associated Press Top 25 teams.

Those in the coaching fraternity hold former Michigan State coach Jud Heathcote in high esteem. When you consider the fact that Tom Izzo and Heathcote are now tied atop the Michigan State record book with 340 victories, it speaks volumes for Izzo. Of all the top coaches in the game today, Izzo may be the most underrated among fans.

Stat line of the week: Georgia Tech senior forward Zachery Peacock hit 10 of 11 shots from the field and scored 22 points as the Yellow Jackets defeated Boston University, 85-67, for fifth place in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off.

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