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USC forward Alijah Arenas has had as tough a 10 months as almost any player in Division I basketball. Last April, Arenas crashed his Tesla Cybertruck into a fire hydrant and was placed into a medically induced coma because of smoke inhalation from the crash. 

Last summer, Arenas suffered a knee injury that required surgery, which caused him to miss the first two months of the 2025-26 college basketball season. Arenas has played in just six games this season and notched his signature moment last weekend against Penn State. 

With the Trojans and the Nittany Lions tied at 75-all, Arenas got the ball off the inbounds with 7.3 seconds left. Tasked with making a play, the 6-foot-5, lanky freshman fumbled the ball around the three-point line before awkwardly working his way into the paint. Maneuvering around the Penn State defender, Arenas tossed the ball high off the glass to connect on what would be the game-winning shot with 0.7 seconds. It gave USC a dramatic and much-needed win and introduced Arenas to the college basketball world,

"Alijah Arenas has been phenomenal," USC coach Eric Musselman said. "Obviously, we wanted to put the ball in his hands at the end of the game, and I'm glad we got his iso at the top of the key -- I was a little worried he would be denied the catch, but there was great execution with a couple of good screens."

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The son of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas, Alijah has now scored at least 20 points in each of his last two games. Arenas is a name to know for the 2026 NBA Draft, but is also someone who could be a candidate to return to college basketball next year to raise his draft stock in what projects to be a 2027 NBA Draft class with a lot of uncertainty at the top.

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: Alijah Arenas, USC

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.

Arenas, the former No. 10 overall player in the 2025 recruiting cycle by 247Sports, appeared in his first game on Jan. 21 against Northwestern and logged eight points in 29 minutes. During his first four games, Arenas scored under 10 points. His breakout performance came last week against Indiana when he finished with 29 points and six rebounds during an 81-75 win over Indiana.

Arenas followed up that performance with 24 points in a dramatic win over Penn State. Arenas scored a bucket with 0.7 seconds remaining to seal a win on the road over the Nittany Lions. The last two games have been flashes of why he was such a highly regarded prospect in the first place. With Arenas back, USC is a different team.

Previous Freshman of the Week winners

Frosh Watch: Ranking top 10 freshmen

1. Cameron Boozer | F | Duke 

Stats: 23.3 PPG | 10.0 RPG | 4.0 APG 

Boozer started slow against North Carolina last weekend, but like many games this season, he saved his best for the second half. Boozer finished with 24 points and 11 rebounds in a dramatic loss to the Tar Heels. Boozer had a chance to give his team the lead in the final minute, but missed a shot at the rim. Last week: 1

2. Darryn Peterson | G | Kansas

Stats: 20.5 PPG | 4.2 RPG | 1.7 APG

Less than 30 minutes before Kansas was set to face No. 1 Arizona, Peterson was ruled out due to flu-like symptoms. Peterson has now missed 11 games this season. Ten of those games were because of hamstring/cramping issues. When Peterson plays, he is elite. But the problem is, he has played in just over half of Kansas' games this season. Last week: 2

3. AJ Dybantsa | F | BYU

Stats: 24.0 PPG | 6.3 RPG | 3.5 APG 

After scoring 36 points against Oklahoma State and 28 in a loss to Houston, Dybantsa is now the leading scorer (24 ppg) in college basketball. Despite Dybantsa scoring the ball well, BYU has lost five of its last six games. The Cougars are 5-5 in Big 12 play heading into the final month of the regular season. Last week: 3

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4. Caleb Wilson | F | North Carolina

Stats: 20.2 PPG | 9.6 RPG | 2.8 APG 

Wilson came out on fire against Duke. He scored 17 of his 23 points in the first half to keep UNC close in a game that Duke led by as many as 13 points during the opening 20 minutes of action. The matchup between Boozer and Wilson certainly lived up to the hype. What was most impressive about Wilson's points was that none of them came via a dunk. Wilson is one of the best dunkers in the country. Last week: 4

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5. Kingston Flemings | G | Houston

Stats: 17.0 PPG | 3.3 RPG | 5.4 APG

Since losing to Texas Tech last month, Houston has won four consecutive games. In his most recent outing against BYU, Flemings finished with 19 points, five assists and five rebounds. Last week: 5

6. Keaton Wagler | G | Illinois

Stats: 17.8 PPG | 5.1 RPG | 4.2 APG 

Wagler is coming off his worst shooting performance of the season against Michigan State. The Illinois star finished with 16 points in the loss to the Spartans, but shot just 2 of 16 from the floor. Both of those makes came from the 3-point line.

 Last week: 6

7. Darius Acuff Jr. | G | Arkansas

Stats: 20.5 PPG | 3.0 RPG | 6.3 APG 

Acuff has been one of the most consistent players in college basketball, regardless of class. He has scored at least 20 points in four consecutive games, including a 24-point outburst against Mississippi State. In three of those four games, Acuff recorded at least six assists. Last week: 7

8. Brayden Burries | G | Arizona

Stats: 15.3 PPG | 4.7 RPG | 2.7 APG

Despite Arizona suffering its first loss against Kansas on Monday, Burries had another strong outing. He finished with 25 points and five rebounds against the Jayhawks. Last week: 8

9. Ebuka Okorie | G | Stanford

Stats: 22.4 PPG | 3.54RPG | 3.3 APG 

If you haven't had a chance to watch Okorie play this season, now is the time to start. He is one of the most electric scorers in the nation. He is coming off a 40-point outing against Georgia Tech, where he shot 12 of 21 from the floor. Impressive. Last week: 9

10. Nate Ament | F | Tennessee

Stats: 17.6 PPG | 6.5 RPG | 2.5 APG 

Ament is back in the rankings after a brief hiatus. The Tennessee star is playing his best basketball as of late. He has scored at least 20 points in three consecutive games, including going for 29 points in a 74-71 loss to Kentucky, which tied a career high. Things are starting to click for the Volunteer rookie. Last week: NR