Since losing to Kansas during Thanksgiving week in Las Vegas, Duke has been a different team. The Blue Devils have won their last eight games and star freshman Cooper Flagg has been the leading scorer in five of them.
Flagg, the former No. 1 overall recruit in the 2024 recruiting cycle by 247Sports, entered the season with a ginormous amount of hype around his name. Flagg is projected to become the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft because of his versatility as a two-way player.
Duke is the clear frontrunner to win the ACC. The Blue Devils opened conference play with wins over Louisville, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech last month and kicked off the new year with a blowout win over SMU on the road. Flagg recorded a double-double (24 points, 11 rebounds) to help his team get off to a 4-0 start in league play.
Let’s jump into our rankings and get to the latest CBS Sports/USBWA Freshman of the Week for the 2024-25 college basketball season.
Freshman of the Week: Cooper Flagg, Duke
Welcome back to the Frosh Watch, our weekly ranking of the ten most impressive freshmen in college basketball. 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.
Flagg earned Freshman of the Week honors for the second time this season. Flagg captured the prestigious award on Dec. 10 and is the first two-time winner during the 2024-25 campaign. Flagg recorded 24 points in back-to-back ACC games over Virginia Tech and SMU.
Flagg is Duke’s team leader in points (17.4), rebounds (8.4), assists (3.6) and blocks (1.3). Flagg has five double-doubles in his first 14 career games.
Previous Freshman of the Week winners
- Nov. 12: Tahaad Pettiford, Auburn
- Nov. 19: Joson Sanon, Arizona State
- Nov. 26: Labaron Philon, Alabama
- Dec. 3: Dylan Harper, Rutgers
- Dec. 10: Cooper Flagg, Duke
- Dec. 17: Liam McNeeley, UConn
- Dec. 24: Jeremiah Fears, Oklahoma
- Jan. 1: Ian Jackson, North Carolina
Frosh Watch: Ranking top 10 freshman
1. Cooper Flagg | G/F | Duke
Stats: 17.8 PPG | 8.4 RPG | 3.6 APG
Flagg started the season ranked No. 1 on this list and has held firm at this spot throughout the season. Flagg is on pace to earn All-American honors as a freshman and has been one of the best players in the sport. Flagg is averaging 1.6 steals per game, which trails Maliq Brown for the team lead. That’s the only stat category he doesn’t lead his team in. Last week: 1
2. Dylan Harper | G | Rutgers
Stats: 22.8 PPG | 5.3 RPG | 4.8 RPG
Harper had a rough outing in Rutgers’ loss to Wisconsin. Harper came into the game questionable due to an illness and finished with zero points and four rebounds in only 15 minutes. In his last outing against Columbia, he recorded his first triple-double. Last week: 2
3. Kasparas Jakučionis | G/F | Illinois
Stats: 16.4 PPG | 5.6 RPG | 5.4 APG
Jakučionis had a big second half in Illinois’ 109-77 win over Oregon on the road, posting 16 points, six rebounds and six assists. He followed it by scoring 18 points and added six assists and five rebounds in a close win over Washington. Last week: 3
4. Ace Bailey | G/F | Rutgers
Stats: 19.9 PPG | 7.7 RPG | 0.7 SPG
Bailey had the best scoring performance of his college career in an 84-74 loss to Indiana last week. Bailey scored 39 points and added eight rebounds and four blocks. Bailey scored nine points in a 75-63 loss to Wisconsin on Monday. He is one of the best midrange shooters in his class and is tracking to become a top-five pick in the NBA Draft this summer. Last week: 5
5. Jeremiah Fears | G | Oklahoma
Stats: 17.9 PPG | 4.4 APG | 3.6 RPG
Fears scored 16 points and added five rebounds in Oklahoma’s blowout loss to Alabama. The Sooners entered last weekend as one of three undefeated teams remaining in the sport. Oklahoma’s next test is against Texas A&M. Last week: 4
6. Derik Queen | C | Maryland
Stats: 16.0 PPG | 8.0 RPG | 2.0 APG
After finishing with single-digit points for only the second time this season, Queen responded with a 17-point outing in an 82-79 loss to Oregon. Maryland is off to a 1-3 start in Big Ten play, with the lone win coming against Ohio State in last month’s conference opener. Last week: 6
7. Ian Jackson | G | North Carolina
Stats: 14.9 PPG | 3.4 RPG | 0.6 APG
For the first time this season, Jackson entered the rankings. He is playing like North Carolina’s best player and has been a huge reason why his team has won three of its last four games. Jackson scored at least 23 points in all four of those games, which includes a career-high 27 in a 74-73 win over Notre Dame. The former five-star prospect is certainly living up to his billing right now. Last week: NR
8. Tre Johnson | G/F | Texas
Stats: 19.0 PPG | 2.7 RPG | 2.3 APG
Johnson scored 11 points in Texas’ loss to Texas A&M last weekend. He is still averaging a team-leading 19 points per game. His team currently is 11-3 and faces No. 2 Auburn and No. 1 Tennessee during its next two games. Big test ahead for Johnson and the Longhorns. Last week: 7
9. Boogie Fland | G | Arkansas
Stats: 15.6 PPG | 5.9 APG | 3.4 RPG
Arkansas lost its conference opener to No. 1 Tennessee on the road last weekend. Fland scored 12 points and added three rebounds, assists and steals in the loss. The Razorbacks face Ole Miss and Florida during their next two games. Last week: 9
10. Egor Demin | G/F | BYU
Stats: 11.3 PPG | 6.0 APG | 4.4 RPG
After starting the season hot and surging to the top half of his list, Demin has struggled. He missed some time with an injury and has scored just seven points combined during BYU’s first two conference games against Arizona State and Houston. BYU faces Texas Tech next. Last week: 8
