The Wes Johnson Show

In the 80’s, Dominique Wilkins was known as the “Human Highlight Reel”. It’s a nickname that would fit Wes Johnson perfectly. Every game of late he’s had a couple plays that belong on Sportscenter –typically alleyoop dunks off of feeds from Rautins, who seems to have a great sense for when Johnson is going to the hoop. The guy is 6’7’’, but jumps center instead of the taller Jackson and AO. He leads the team in rebounds, and is second in blocks. And when he goes up for boards, he really goes up, soaring above bigger players. Everyone saw that one-handed jam in the Colgate game, and against Maine he seemed to float down the lane, soaring above the astonished Black Bears, before he slammed the ball through the rim. The public relations guys should redo the pre-game video to keep it updated with Johnson’s latest mind boggling plays.

Saturday night, they had the best half of basketball since the Georgia Tech game in 2003. (There’s that year again; I hate to keep bringing up those comparisons.) After Maine sunk a couple threes in the opening minutes, the zone completely shut the Bears down, put them in a trap from which they could not escape. By halftime it was 60-12, and the crowd was almost embarrassed for those poor kids who were being humiliated in front of 20,000 fans; I’m sure their biggest crowd of the year. But one thing I liked about that half was that it confirmed that this year’s Orange are playing with intensity, even when the opposition doesn’t require that. For the past few years, even in last year’s Sweet Sixteen season, Cuse would often play down to the level of their opposition. Maybe they’d play hard for ten minutes, but how often did they come out of the locker room, and sleep walk until they found themselves down by ten? Or maybe they’d run out to a lead, and then give the lead back so that the game was close in the second half. This year’s bunch has been lighting up the scoreboard, and not letting lousy teams hang around with a chance for a lucky win. (Lemoyne excepted of course, but that now appears to have been Boeheim’s teaching tool for the value of the 2-3 zone.)

Another great thing is the depth. They’re already seven deep, with Joseph and Jardine off the bench for long stretches. But coach is working Mookie, Southerland and Riley (two freshmen) into the rotation. Mookie has been playing well since the Cornell game, when he threw some kind of fit, and has learned to give up the ball for more open teammates. He and Southerland are streaky shooters, but when they’re on, they give the team four options from beyond the arc. I worried about the loss of Devendorf, because Rautins has off nights when he cannot find the hoop. But Johnson has great touch from the outside, and with the other two off the bench, Cuse should be able to find three-point shots on most nights this winter.

Today Cuse climbed to 6^th and 7^th in the polls, a rarefied altitude that makes me nervous. I like it better when the team has a chip on its shoulder, and wants to earn everyone's respect. They play Florida in Tampa on Thursday, and it wouldn’t be the end of the world if they lost that game, and came back to earth before the conference season begins. We’ll have to tune in on ESPN360. But aside from the winning and losing, if you want some eye-popping, rim-rattling, mind-blowing highlights, keep your focus on number four, Wes Johnson, as he flies up through the rafters, down the lane, and into the highlight reel. Go Orange.