It Could Be a First-Class Group

Now that Dajuan Wagner is a distant college basketball memory, it’s time for a look at this season’s best freshmen.

Some of them might even stick around for their sophomore years.

No player has been a more dramatic surprise than Florida’s Matt Walsh, the latest disciple of the Jason Kapono-style white headband.

No group of freshmen has been more impressive than the North Carolina trio who led the upset of No. 2 Kansas on Wednesday.

Walsh figured to be a third wheel to freshman teammates Anthony Roberson and Christian Drejer, but with Drejer’s debut delayed by injury, Walsh has made perhaps the most unexpected debut in the country.

An early-season top 10, in alphabetical order:

Hassan Adams, Arizona -- The first basket of his career was a rim-rattling one-handed dunk off a pass from Jason Gardner. Adams, a guard from Westchester High, scored 22 points on nine-of-12 shooting in 17 minutes off the bench in his debut for the No. 1 Wildcats in a rout of Western Kentucky. Coach Lute Olson says Adams and his roommate, Andre Iguodala, might be the best pair of wing players to arrive at Arizona together.

Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse -- He’s a 6-foot-8 forward who averaged 27.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in his first two games. “He reminds me of Billy Owens as a freshman,” Coach Jim Boeheim said. “He’s got a chance to be real special. [But] like all freshmen, you worry about the hype getting too much.” Maybe you also worry how long he’ll stay in school.

Chris Bosh, Georgia Tech -- Granted, it was against Arkansas Pine Bluff, but who is to sneeze at a 26-point, 14-rebound performance with 10 offensive rebounds? The 6-10 left-hander’s debut was the best by a Yellow Jacket since Kenny Anderson’s 28-point debut against Georgia State in 1989.

Raymond Felton, North Carolina -- The questions about whether three freshmen could possibly bail out Coach Matt Doherty after a hideous 8-20 season seem to be answered already. With Felton at the point and averaging almost eight assists, North Carolina looks like North Carolina again.

Torin Francis, Notre Dame -- The team belongs to point guard Chris Thomas, but it’s hard to ignore the 20 rebounds Francis had against Bucknell. He was much less of a factor in a loss to Creighton, however.

Rashad McCants, North Carolina -- He scored 28 points in his debut as Felton’s partner in the backcourt. No North Carolina player -- not Michael Jordan, not James Worthy, not Vince Carter -- ever scored more in his first game.

Sean May, North Carolina -- You can’t leave the son of Scott May -- star of Indiana’s unbeaten 1976 national championship team -- off the list. Not when the beefy big man with the quick feet is averaging close to a double-double in points and rebounds.

Shavlik Randolph, Duke -- Freshmen such as Randolph, a forward, and guard J.J. Redick are part of the reason the Blue Devils can lose Jason Williams, Mike Dunleavy and Carlos Boozer and still be in the top 10. After two games, Randolph is averaging 20 points and 9.5 rebounds and has made 11 of 20 shots, and he and Redick are the Blue Devils’ leading scorers, just ahead of triple-double threat Chris Duhon.

Bracey Wright, Indiana -- This Texan didn’t consider playing for the former Indiana coach now residing in Lubbock, Texas. Instead, he headed for Bloomington, where he is starting in the backcourt alongside Tom Coverdale and Kyle Hornsby. A shooter and slasher, he had 15 points in the Hoosiers’ victory over Gonzaga and 21 against Virginia.

Walsh, Florida -- He shoots from all over the court, passes, drives and has marvelous basketball sense. A 6-6 swingman, he had 26 points, five assists, four steals and three rebounds in his debut against Louisiana Tech. “Crazy,” he told the Orlando Sentinel. “I mean, Dick Vitale? You see him on TV, then there you are, he’s interviewing you.” Might happen a lot, from the looks of it.

Shark Warning

Jerry Tarkanian is retired, but Fresno State is in deepening trouble with the NCAA in the aftermath of his seven seasons at the school.

The Fresno Bee reported this week that former player Tito Maddox admitted accepting about $30,000 from a relative of Las Vegas sports agent Ron Delpit during the 2000-2001 season.

In addition, the paper reported, former player Terrance Roberson said he accepted several hundred dollars during the 1999-2000 season from Nate Cebrun, a figure with ties to several college scandals who was close to Tarkanian at Nevada Las Vegas.

Tarkanian, who retired after last season, told the Bee he was “sick” and “heartbroken” about the reports, and said Maddox lied to Fresno coaches when asked if he had accepted money.

Among further incriminating evidence reported by the Bee was an admission by Delpit’s son-in-law, Baron Bower, that he repeatedly gave envelopes from Delpit to Maddox that he “assumed” contained cash. Delpit denied the allegations.

In the case involving Roberson, the Bee reported records show agent Robert Walsh’s name and signature on pass lists compiled by the Fresno coaching staff during the 1999-2000 season. Cebrun told the Bee the money he gave Roberson came from Walsh.

Cebrun, who said he occasionally rode the Fresno State team bus, earlier purchased a UNLV championship ring after the Rebels won the 1990 NCAA title.

He also was involved in the illegal payment of $2,500 to former Auburn star Chris Porter when Porter was an NBA prospect. Cebrun was convicted for his involvement in the 1993 Florida State football scandal.

“We took every effort we could to monitor the players,” Tarkanian, who no longer is close to Cebrun, told the Bee. “We had institutional control.”

In any case, because of the legacy of the Tarkanian era, new Fresno State Coach Ray Lopes, formerly Kelvin Sampson’s top assistant at Oklahoma, appears poised to endure probation.

Around the Rim

Mississippi State’s status as a Top 25 team depends on an NCAA decision expected next week on the eligibility of center Mario Austin. Austin is being held out as the NCAA reviews his high school academic record after saying Austin, a junior, mistakenly was ruled eligible as a freshman. Without him, Mississippi State is 1-1, including a loss to Louisiana Lafayette. An attorney for Austin -- who briefly declared for the NBA draft after last season before returning to school -- said he is prepared to sue the NCAA if Austin is ruled ineligible.... Among other teams that might be hard-pressed to live up to preseason expectations: Western Kentucky. Seven-footer Chris Marcus still is recovering from off-season foot surgery. Although the Hilltoppers played well without Marcus when he was injured last season, they suffered another blow during a season-opening 107-68 loss to Arizona when starting forward Todor Pandov was lost for the season after suffering a knee injury.... More mid-major blues: Ball State senior Theron Smith, best remembered for leading the upsets of Kansas and UCLA last season, is seeking a medical redshirt season because of continuing tendinitis after major knee surgery. He will not play this season.