Duke v Stanford
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It's no secret that this year's frosh class in college basketball has been special. The build-up to the 2026 NBA Draft will be one of the most anticipated in recent memory, as the influx of pure talent heading to the next level will have a significant impact on the league for years to come.

One of the stars of this class has been Duke forward Cameron Boozer, who is one of the favorites to win National Player of the Year honors. If that does happen, Boozer has a chance to join prestigious company as the 10th different Duke player to win the most coveted award in the sport.

The last time two different players from the same school won back-to-back National Player of the Year honors, you have to go back to the early 2000s. Former Duke star Shane Battier won NPOTY in 2001. The year after that, Jason Williams won the award.

Arizona unanimous No. 1 in AP Top 25, North Carolina falls in college basketball rankings
Cameron Salerno
Arizona unanimous No. 1 in AP Top 25, North Carolina falls in college basketball rankings

Former Duke star Cooper Flagg won National Player of the Year last season after leading the program to the Final Four. Could Boozer become the latest from Duke to accomplish the feat? Time will tell. But if the season ended today, Boozer would have as good a case as anyone to win it.

Let's jump into our rankings and get to our CBS Sports/USBWA Freshman of the Week for the 2025-26 college basketball season.

Freshman of the Week: Cameron Boozer

Welcome back to the Frosh Watch, our weekly ranking of the ten most impressive freshmen in college basketball. For the 11th season in a row, CBS Sports has once again teamed up with the United States Basketball Writers Association and its Wayman Tisdale Freshman of the Year Award to present this every-Tuesday feature. Each week, we'll start by announcing the national Freshman of the Week honoree. The cycle for FOTW runs Tuesday-Monday.

Boozer, the former No. 3 overall player in the 2025 recruiting cycle by 247Sports, has been one of the best and most efficient players in the sport this season. The Duke star is averaging 23.2 points per game, which ranks No. 3 among all Division I players. He is also averaging 9.9 rebounds, tied for 17th among all players.

Boozer is coming off a 30-point outing against Stanford in which he secured his ninth double-double. Boozer also finished with 21 points and 13 rebounds in a 71-56 win over Cal earlier in the week. Duke has won six consecutive games since suffering its first loss against Texas Tech.

Previous Freshman of the Week winners

Frosh Watch: Ranking top 10 freshmen

1. Cameron Boozer | F | Duke 

Stats: 23.2 PPG | 9.9 RPG | 4.1 APG 

Boozer is coming off one of his best games of the season against Stanford. He finished with 30 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, three steals and a block during an 80-50 win. Boozer also shot 70.6% from the floor (12 of 17). That performance marked the fifth time this season he shot at least 70% from the field on 10 or more attempts. Last week: 1

College basketball scores, winners and losers: Iowa State, Vanderbilt go down again; Gonzaga overcomes injury
Cameron Salerno
College basketball scores, winners and losers: Iowa State, Vanderbilt go down again; Gonzaga overcomes injury

2. AJ Dybantsa | F | BYU

Stats: 22.5 PPG | 6.8 RPG | 3.6 APG 

Dybantsa's streak of scoring at least 20 points was snapped against Texas Tech last weekend. The BYU star finished with 13 points in 32 minutes during an 84-71 loss. Dybantsa had scored at least 20 points in 10 consecutive games, including a 25-point outing earlier in the week against TCU. Last week: 2

3. Darryn Peterson | G | Kansas

Stats: 22.2 PPG | 4.4 RPG | 2.1 APG

Peterson had his most efficient outing of the season in Kansas' win over Baylor. Peterson shot 11 of 13 (84.6%) from the floor and finished with 26 points, three assists and two rebounds. That performance marked his third game this season with at least 25 points, and he did it in just 23 minutes of action. Last week: 3

4. Caleb Wilson | F | North Carolina

Stats: 19.7 PPG | 10.6 RPG | 2.7 APG 

North Carolina had a week to forget after going 0-2 on its West Coast roadtrip against Cal and Stanford. However, Wilson played well. In the loss against Stanford, Wilson finished with 26 points, nine rebounds and two steals. In UNC's loss against Cal, he posted 17 points and four steals. Last week: 4

5. Darius Acuff Jr. | G | Arkansas

Stats: 19.8 PPG | 3.0 RPG | 6.3 APG 

Acuff had another performance to remember during Arkansas' win over South Carolina. The star floor general recorded 13 assists with zero turnovers, which marked the most assists without a turnover in program history. Acuff finished with 18 points and 13 assists in the win over the Gamecocks. Last week: 5

6. Kingston Flemings | G | Houston

Stats: 15.6 PPG | 3.4 RPG | 5.4 APG

Flemings' stock keeps going up. The Houston star finished with 20 points, eight assists, four steals and two blocks in a 30-point win over Arizona State last weekend. He now has seven games this season with at least 20 points. Last week: 6

7. Ebuka Okorie | G | Stanford

Stats: 22.1 PPG | 3.5 RPG | 3.2 APG 

Okorie is one of the best scorers in college basketball. The Stanford guard scored a career-high 36 points (with nine assists) during an upset win over North Carolina. The nine assists Okorie recorded also marked a new career best. He has four games this season with at least 30 points. Last week: 9

8. Mikel Brown Jr. | G | Louisville

Stats: 16.6 PPG | 3.0 RPG | 5.1 APG 

Brown hasn't played since Dec. 13 against Memphis and has missed eight consecutive games. The Cardinals have a key matchup against No. 5 Duke later this month on the road. Louisville will need its star guard back for that matchup to have a chance to pull off an upset. The Cardinals are just 3-3 in ACC play so far. Last week: 8

9. Hannes Steinbach | F | Washington

Stats: 17.7 PPG | 11.1 RPG | 1.7 APG 

Steinbach finished with another double-double (11 points, 14 rebounds) during a loss to Michigan at home. Steinbach also recorded a near double-double (17 points, nine rebounds) the following game against Michigan State. Last week: 9

10. Brayden Burries | G | Arizona

Stats: 14.3 PPG | 4.1 RPG | 2.4 APG

Burries bounced back from back-to-back games with six points by recording 18 during a win over UCF. Arizona became the first team in the AP Top 25 poll to be voted unanimously No. 1. The Wildcats received all 61 first-place votes. Burries and fellow frosh Koa Peat are one of the best duos in the sport. Last week: 10