HE BURNS WITH POTENTIAL.

Byline: BILLY WITZ

PHENOM is tattooed neatly on the left biceps of Evan Burns.

With a basketball in his hands, Burns indeed can do phenomenal things. A 6-foot-8 forward with uncommon grace and a smooth shot, the San Diego State freshman is skilled enough to draw three NBA scouts to an otherwise prospect-less arena Tuesday night at Long Beach State.

Whether he lives up to his own billing - or his tattoo turns out to be a reminder of promise unfulfilled - is a matter also in his hands.

To this point, there is serious question about how Burns handles things that aren't round and leather.

That is evident by the path Burns has taken to San Diego State.

He was a McDonald's All-American at Fairfax High in Los Angeles, but his effort on the court was questioned, and his grades were so poor in his first two years that the only two schools who seriously recruited him were UCLA and San Diego State.

UCLA offered Burns a scholarship, which he accepted last September, despite the school not having his transcripts at the time. When the university saw them, Burns was told by the administration he would have to show significant progress toward qualifying academically before he could sign in the spring.

Burns was allowed to sign a letter of intent in April, but he didn't have enough credits to graduate from Fairfax, something he did by taking summer classes at Santa Monica College. Then the NCAA declared him a partial qualifier, which UCLA doesn't accept, saying he didn't have the required core classes.

Burns appealed the ruling, but UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero said the school gave Burns no assurances he would be admitted even if the NCAA did change its mind.

``He still had to be admitted,'' Guerrero said.

So, rather than not attend school while waiting out the NCAA, Burns enrolled at San Diego State. At issue with the NCAA was whether a cinema class he took at Fairfax met the requirement of a fourth-year English class. The L.A. Unified School District told the NCAA it approved the class as a core requirement. Some of Burns' math classes also came under scrutiny.

Finally, last Thursday the NCAA ruled Burns eligible. He joined the team that day and took the court for the first time in Saturday's 89-81 loss to No. 1 Arizona. He scored seven points.

In a 64-55 victory over Long Beach State, he contributed 10 points, four rebounds and two steals in 22 minutes.

``I'm still working on getting into shape,'' Burns said afterward. ``I feel a lot better than I did in the Arizona game. I ran up and down the court a lot faster.''

Burns said he has no ill feelings toward UCLA and that the school, along with Fairfax and San Diego State, helped him with the NCAA. He gave the image of someone just happy to be on the court again.

After seriously considering entering the NBA draft last spring, Burns said he'll be at San Diego State for a while.

One of the NBA scouts said he hoped it was true.

``He's a long way away,'' the scout said. ``For him to even talk about (leaving after this year), he has no clue. The mom and the AAU coaches don't get it. They think if there's NBA guys at the game, he's there.

``That's what's gotten out of control. He was by far the most interesting guy out there - he's so effortless, he blocked a shot and he gets his shot.

``But he's a guy that you should be thinking three years from now, he has a chance to be a lottery pick. With everybody who's in his ear, that's not going to happen. You wonder if he has the focus to make it.''

--Burns on the Bruins: Burns, who spent most of the summer practicing with UCLA players, said he's as baffled as anybody by their slow start.

``I don't really know what is getting into those guys,'' Burns said. ``They played a couple games where, I don't know. It just seemed like they were thinking about something else. But they will get it together.''

--Kids, don't try this: Long Beach State guard Tony Darden, who is shooting 48 percent on 3-pointers and made eight in last week's 65-63 loss to Pepperdine, refined his shot the hard way.

When he was 15, living in North Carolina with his dad, who was in the Army, Darden crashed his father's car.

``I got in lot of trouble,'' Darden said. ``I was grounded for a few months. The only place my dad let me go was to the gym. That's when I became a better shooter. I tried to turn it into a positive.''

--Go-to guy: Cal is off to a 4-1 start, with the only defeat coming in overtime to Georgia. Despite losing centers Solomon Hughes and Jamaal Sampson to graduation and the NBA, respectively, the Bears have received good play in the pivot from 6-foot-11 sophomore Amit Tamir. Tamir, an Israeli who played a European-style perimeter game last year, is leading the Bears with 10 rebounds a game.

--Tip of the cap: For all the attention Luke Ridnour and Luke Jackson get at Oregon, the dirty work done by the Ducks' 6-foot-8 forward Robert Johnson is quietly appreciated.

``I love the way Johnson plays,'' Kansas coach Roy Williams said, after Johnson had 12 points and 10 rebounds in the Ducks' 84-78 victory over the Jayhawks. ``He just battles his tail off.''

--Double dribbles: If Arizona felt at home on the court at San Diego State's Cox Arena last week, the Wildcats should have. It's the same floor used for the 1997 Final Four in Indianapolis, on which the Wildcats won the national title. ... Princeton forward Spencer Gloger, who sat out the past two seasons after shuttling between UCLA and Princeton, is leading the Tigers with 17 points a game.

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NUMBERS GAME

700 Games Gene Keady will have coached at Purdue after Wednesday's game against Belmont.

20,762 People who watched Oregon beat Kansas in Portland, Ore. - the largest crowd ever at a college game in the state and also believed to be the largest to see the Ducks play.

3,103 Signatures on petitions to Iowa interim president Sandy Boyd urging that Hawkeye Pierre Pierce be dismissed from the team after his conviction on a sexual-assault charge.

WORTH WATCHING

Texas at Arizona, Sun., 1:30 p.m.If Texas had beaten Notre Dame, this would have been No. 1 vs. 2. Still, there are plenty of reasons to watch two of the best teams in the country - at the top of the list is how Arizona will handle Texas point guard T.J. Ford.

WORTH THE DRIVE

Oregon at Pepperdine, Sat., 7:30 p.m.It's not every day a Pac-10 team visits Firestone Fieldhouse. And if you like fastbreak basketball, it doesn't get any better - or faster - than this.

WHO'S HOT

Notre Dame, which beat three consecutive top-10 teams last week: Marquette, Maryland and Texas. ... Creighton has been to four consecutive NCAA Tournaments, and the Blue Jays are 6-0 and have given Notre Dame its only loss.

WHO'S NOT

North Carolina, after its convincing romp to the Preseason NIT title, wasn't so convincing after one-sided losses to Illinois and Kentucky. ... Western Kentucky, without NBA prospect Chris Marcus, lost to Evansville and Murray State.

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