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This past summer, eight players from the Big Ten were selected in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft. Of those eight players, six were freshmen. It's unclear how many will be selected when the NBA Draft rolls around in just over six months, but if the first month of the 2025-26 college basketball season has shown us anything, it's that Hannes Steinbach will likely hear his name called on Day 1.

After missing three games due to an ankle sprain, the Washington star returned to the lineup in style. The highlight of his season, so far, came against USC, when the Huskies rallied from a double-digit deficit to hand the Trojans their first loss. Steinbach finished with 24 points and 16 rebounds in the win.

"We shared the basketball again, when we do that, we're hard to guard. We keep spacing, and it opens up stuff for Hannes," Washington coach Danny Sprinkle said after the win over USC. "... I didn't know he had 24 and 16. I knew he was dominating; I didn't know he had that. That's just the player he is."

The Big Ten Freshman of the Year race will be wide open, and Steinbach certainly looks like he will be in the mix. Despite playing in just six games this season, Steinbach is tied for eighth among all Division I players with five double-doubles. If you haven't watched him play, now is the time to start. He is one of the best rebounders in the country.

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: Hannes Steinbach, Washington

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.

The former four-star recruit in the 247Sports rankings is coming off two of his best performances of the season. In an 82-80 loss to UCLA, Steinbach finished with 29 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. In UW's next game against No. 24 USC on the road, he finished with 24 points, 16 rebounds and three assists in an 84-76 win.

Steinbach has recorded a double-double in five of his six appearances thus far. The 16 rebounds he pulled down against USC tied a season-high. He is averaging 12.8 rebounds per game on the season, which would rank second among all qualified Division I players. Villanova's Duke Brennan ranks No. 1 (12.9) in rebounds per game.

Previous Freshman of the Week winners

Frosh Watch: Ranking top 10 freshmen

1. Cameron Boozer | F | Duke 

Stats: 23.0 PPG | 9.9 RPG | 3.8 APG 

What continues to stand out about Boozer when watching him play is that it doesn't matter how good or bad he performs in the first half because he's able to flip a switch when it matters down the stretch. By his standards, Boozer didn't have his best game against Michigan State (18 points, 15 rebounds and five assists), but he made winning plays to help the Blue Devils pull off an upset. Of note, Boozer's game against Michigan State was the first time he ran into foul trouble all season.

If the season ended today, he would be the NPOTY. Last week: 1

2. Darryn Peterson | G | Kansas

Stats: 20.0 PPG | 3.3 RPG | 2.3 APG

He's back. After missing seven games with a hamstring injury, Peterson returned to Kansas' lineup and provided a much-needed spark. Peterson logged 23 minutes and finished with 17 points and three rebounds in a win over Missouri. Last week: 2

Darryn Peterson injury: Kansas star, top NBA Draft prospect returns in Jayhawks' victory vs. Missouri
Cameron Salerno
Darryn Peterson injury: Kansas star, top NBA Draft prospect returns in Jayhawks' victory vs. Missouri

3. Caleb Wilson | F | North Carolina

Stats: 19.3 PPG | 10.6 RPG | 2.4 APG

Wilson had two strong performances last week against Kentucky and Georgetown. Wilson finished with 15 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in a 67-64 win over Kentucky in the ACC/SEC Challenge. In the following game against Georgetown, Wilson recorded 20 points and 14 rebounds. Wilson has six double-doubles in nine games. Last week: 3

4. AJ Dybantsa | F | BYU

Stats: 19.4 PPG | 6.3 RPG | 2.6 APG 

Dybansta made a lot of high-level buckets against California Baptist. He finished with 22 points, five rebounds and five assists in a 91-60 win. The five assists he recorded marked a career high. BYU has an upcoming showdown against Clemson this week. Last week: 4

5. Mikel Brown Jr. | G | Louisville

Stats: 16.7 PPG | 3.2 RPG | 5.3 APG 

Although Louisville suffered its first loss of the season against Arkansas in the ACC/SEC Challenge, Brown had a solid outing. He finished with 22 points, five rebounds and three assists. He also threw down a powerful one-handed dunk in that game. Last week: 5

6. Koa Peat | F | Arizona

Stats: 15.9 PPG | 5.5 RPG | 3.1 APG

Peat had a very efficient performance against No. 20 Auburn. He finished with 18 points on 8 of 11 shooting and also added five assists, four rebounds, two steals and a block. He has scored in double figures in seven of his team's eight games. Last week: 7

7. Darius Acuff Jr. | G | Arkansas

Stats: 17.4 PPG | 3.0 RPG | 5.4 APG

Acuff recorded the first double-double (17 points, 10 assists) of his career in a 89-80 win over Louisville in the ACC/SEC Challenge. In his next game against Fresno State, Acuff finished with 18 points, eight assists and five rebounds. He also shot 3 of 6 from the 3-point line after missing all four of his attempts from outside against Louisville. Last week: 8

8. Nate Ament | F | Tennessee 

Stats: 16.3 PPG | 7.1 RPG | 2.8 APG 

Ament struggled against Illinois in his last outing. He finished with a season-low nine points and shot 4 of 14 (28.6%) from the floor. In the previous game against Syracuse, he shot 2 of 10 from the floor. The positive news is that Ament has shown he can get to the free-throw line. Last week: 6

9. Kingston Flemings | G | Houston

Stats: 15.9 PPG | 3.6 RPG | 5.0 APG

Flemings continues to be one of the most impressive guards in this class. He finished with 21 points, five assists and three rebounds in an 82-67 win over Florida State. The most impressive part of that performance, though, was the fact that he finished with (eight!!!) steals. Last week: 9

10. Hannes Steinbach | F | Washington

Stats: 18.5 PPG | 12.8 RPG | 2.7 APG 

For the first time this season, Steinbach enters Frosh Watch. The Washington forward has been a rebounding machine this season. In six games, he has recorded 32 offensive rebounds. He's able to create second-chance opportunities for himself and his teammates. He's one of the most valuable players in the country. Last week: NR