The first week of college basketball in 2025-2026 is over. The 2025 recruiting class has already lived up to preseason hype, and is shaping up as an all-time group. Casual college basketball viewers might have heard of the “Big Three”, heading into the new season. Darryne Peterson of Kansas, AJ Dybantsa from BYU and Cameron Boozer of Duke are all part the “Big 3”. This class has much more depth than those three stars. Many first-years are making their presence known and contributing to wins. Arizona forward Koa peat had the best debut of all first-year players in the sport. Peat, a dominant force in the Wildcats’ hoop department, helped his team to a win against the reigning National Champion Florida on opening night. Our CBS Sports/USBWA freshman of the week is for the college basketball 2025-26 season.
Freshman of The Week: Koa PEAT, Arizona We are back with the Frosh Watch. This is our weekly ranking the top ten freshmen in college hoops. CBS Sports is once again teaming up with United States Basketball for the 11th year in a row. Basketball Writers Association’s Wayman Tisdale award for the Freshman Of The Year is a feature that appears every Tuesday. We’ll begin each week by announcing our national Freshman-of-the Week. The FOTW cycle is Tuesday-Monday. The No. The No. Peat, who is the son of NBA legend LeBron James, is a part of Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd’s talented recruiting class.
Peat was one of the best players in the United States against Florida. Peat scored 30 points and had seven rebounds. He also had three assists, three steals, and three dunks. Peat’s performance was even more impressive because he played against the frontcourt that is arguably the strongest and most experienced in the country. Peat had an impressive performance against the Gators, outperforming the more experienced players. He scored 18 in 28 minutes later that week against Utah Tech.
Frosh watch: ranking top 10 freshmen
1. Darryn Peterson | G | Kansas Stats: 21.5 PPG | 3.5 RPG | 3.0 APG Peterson debuts at No. Frosh Watch. In my opinion, the Kansas star should be No. The 2026 NBA Draft will feature the No. His ability to move with the basketball in his hand and make shots are unmatched. Kansas cannot generate enough offensively without him. Peterson had a really tough matchup against UNC standout senior defender Seth Trimble last week. In a way, the Tar Heels succeeded in making anyone on Kansas’ roster beat them. Peterson finished the game with 22 points, shooting 8 for 14 in the Jayhawk loss.
2. Cameron Boozer | F | Duke Stats: 20 PPG | 10.5 RPG | 3.5 APG Boozer is going to be able to wake up, get out of bed, drive to the arena and record a double-double. It’s almost automatic for him. Even though he struggled during the first half of Texas’s collegiate debut, he still managed 15 rebounds and 13 points. All 15 of these points came also after halftime.
Boozer’s performance against Western Carolina was his best of the season. He had 25 points and eight rebounds in only 23 minutes. Boozer’s season will be marked by averaging two double-doubles. He is on his game every single night.
3. Caleb Wilson | F | North Carolina Stats: 22.0 PPG | 5.5 RPG | 3.5 APG Wilson was considered for Frosh of the Week after having two standout performances. Wilson scored 22 points and grabbed four rebounds in just 25 minutes against Western Carolina and followed it up with an even better showing against Kansas. Wilson finished with 24 points, seven rebounds, four steals and four assists in the win over the Jayhawks in Chapel Hill. What stood out to me is what Wilson did in those minutes. He was consistently hustling all over the floor, diving on the floor and playing tough defense. When your best player plays like he has something to prove, you have something special brewing. UNC hasn’t had a lottery pick since 2019. That will change this summer.
Put Caleb Wilson F among nation’s top freshmen as well after UNC’s win vs. Kansas in early blue-blood battle
Isaac Trotter
4. Koa Peat | F | ArizonaStats: 24.0 PPG | 5.0 RPG | 4.0 APG Peat was simply dominant against an experienced and talented Florida frontcourt. He was the best player on the floor against two players (Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh) who are potential All-American candidates. Peat’s blend of size and strength makes him a matchup nightmare. He still isn’t a threat as an outside shooter, but anything inside the 3-point line has a chance to go in. Peat should be a strong contender for Big 12 Freshman of the Year.
Tracking college basketball freshman debuts: Cameron Boozer, AJ Dybantsa impress, Fexplodes
Cameron Salerno
5. AJ Dybantsa | F | BYU Stats: 19.0 PPG | 7.0 RPG | 3.0 APG Dybantsa entered as the most hyped-up recruit in BYU program history. He put up a good performance (21 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists) against Villanova.
Although Dybantsa is ranked No. Dybantsa is ranked No. 5 in the initial rankings. He has a good case for moving up to the top 3. This weekend, Dybantsa will face UConn in Boston. It will be their homecoming game.
6. Nate Ament | F | Tennessee Stats: 20.5 PPG | 8.5 RPG | 3.0 APG Ament is the highest-ranked recruit in Tennessee program history. Tennessee’s Rick Barnes has seen many transfers become productive players in the past, but has never had someone of Ament’s talent. In his debut, he had 18 points with nine rebounds. In a rout of Northern Kentucky, he scored 23 points. Ament managed to get to free throw line 10 times in that game.
7. Darius Acuff Jr. | G | Arkansas Stats: 19.0 PPG | 2.0 RPG | 5.0 APG Arkansas coach John Calipari has done a phenomenal job producing guards at the college level who are immediately ready to play in the NBA. Acuff has all the ingredients to become the next great point-guard Calipari will be coaching. Acuff is a floor general that can do it all. Acuff scored a total of 22 points against Southern in his debut and finished the game with 16 and six assists before a hostile audience at Michigan State.
8. Mikel Brown Jr. | G | Louisville Stats: 14.5 PPG | 4.0 RPG | 7.5 APG Brown didn’t play much (18 minutes) during Louisville’s opener against South Carolina State, but still finished with 11 points and six assists. Brown played 26 minutes for Jackson State, and finished the game with 18 points and nine assists. He also had five rebounds.
Turnovers are something to watch out for. He had six in the second game. Brown could become the first real point guard selected in the summer draft.
9. Neoklis Avdalas | G | Virginia Tech Stats: 20.5 PPG | 4.0 RPG | 7.5 APG If you haven’t had the chance to watch Avdalas play, you should immediately. Avdalas was a player who went unnoticed by many people because there is so much talent in college basketball. Avdalas, however, looks to be more than capable of making his way into the conversation about best freshmen. The Kalamata, Greece native is a 6-9 guard who can shoot, make plays and score. He scored 33 points and made five 3-pointers in a win of 107-101 over Providence.
10. David Mirkovic | F | Illinois Stats: 18.0 PPG | 12.5 RPG | 2.5 APG Mirkovic had a strong opening week of the season for Illinois. The Niksic native, who is from Montenegro, finished both games with a double, including 19 points and fourteen rebounds in a 113 to 55 win over Jackson State. Illinois enjoyed a successful offseason, bringing in a number of international players with impact. Mirkovic appears to be a contender for Big Ten Freshman Of The Year.
2025-11-11 16:14:33
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