The mysterious men sat nine in a row at a table behind Syracuse’s basket, watching and conferring with one another.

They didn’t say why they were at the Carrier Dome or who they wanted to see. Instead, they just nodded and circled numbers on in-game box scores.

They are NBA talent scouts – guys from Houston, Atlanta, Golden State and Dallas, among others, solely identified by the team affiliation on their placards. And although their purpose can’t be disclosed, Wes Johnson is pretty sure why they’re here — he often hears about the extra eyes watching him.

‘A little bit,’ Johnson said. ‘You know, a lot of people are kind of telling you that stuff.’

So with Monday’s game against No. 7 Georgetown (15-4, 6-3 Big East) came another audition for Johnson. The NBA, regardless of how far into the future, is a dream come true for the player once looked over by every Division I school on the map. With all eyes on him Monday, Johnson didn’t disappoint, registering 14 points, nine rebounds and four blocked shots in SU’s 73-56 victory over the Hoyas.

Despite an ever-shifting Hoya defense applying constant man-to-man pressure, Johnson got his points. But perhaps more importantly, he led the No. 4 Orange (20-1, 7-1 Big East) in shutting down a surging Georgetown offense.

‘I thought his defense was phenomenal tonight,’ Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. ‘He made some really great plays down on the defensive end.’

Timing wasn’t really on Johnson’s side when it came to attention from the pros. Those seats occupied against Georgetown were largely vacant until he dropped 25 in the 2K Sports Classic championship game in Madison Square Garden on Nov. 20. After that, defenses keyed on him and game plans were devised to shut him down. It was going to be harder to get his points.

Monday, once again, was no exception. After facing double- and triple-teams in Marquette’s triangle-and-two defense Saturday, Johnson had to deal with an endless rotation of Georgetown defenders. When one Hoya lost his effectiveness, another – in a trio of Chris Wright, Austin Freeman and Jerrelle Benimon – latched on.

‘Everybody’s going to play him tight,’ Boeheim said. ‘He’s not going to have it easy, that’s for sure.’

But after awhile, Johnson figured it all out.

Against the much smaller Wright, Johnson would take it inside, like he did with a little more than four minutes left to play in the second half.

When posting up the 6-foot-1 guard, Johnson slowly drew his defender back toward the comfort of the perimeter, but he immediately bolted back toward the hoop to receive a wide-open inlet pass from forward Rick Jackson, easily converting the basket.

And if he faced the bigger Benimon, Johnson would step back just inside the 3-point line and drill one of his five field goals on the night.

‘When I saw that, it really just created a mismatch on the opposite court,’ Johnson said. ‘It was really just us finding the right reads and making the right plays.’

Like Boeheim said, the true highlight for Johnson Monday was down low. With 10 minutes left in the second half and the Orange up by 15, Johnson sliced through a pack of Hoyas and leapt to deliver a crushing block on a driving Freeman. The Carrier Dome crowd, already on its feet from a Johnson block two minutes earlier, erupted yet again.

Johnson added two more blocks, both of which came consecutively in one possession, to prevent any thought of a late-game run from Georgetown.

‘Wes is – what are you going to say – I’m just happy to play for him,’ sophomore guard Scoop Jardine said. ‘He’s a guy that’s, you know, he just doesn’t come around often. He’s going to find a way, and that’s what great players do, they find a way.’

As for the mysterious men watching, taking notes, Johnson said it doesn’t matter. If they took favor toward those crushing blocks, toward his weak-side play and all the attention he commanded from the opposing defense, that’s great.

But right now, in the midst of the Big East schedule, he said he needs to keep other things on his mind.

‘I just want to go out there and play my game and not worry about anything else,’ Johnson said. ‘It’s all fun that they’re here and watching us, it’s a dream come true, but we’re trying to go out there and win.’

ctorr@syr.edu

Published on January 25, 2010 at 12:00 pm