INDIANAPOLIS (USBWA) – The U.S. Basketball Writers Association has named five Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week for games of the week ending Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026.
For the 2025-26 season, the USBWA continues its national player of the week program that has been affiliated with the Oscar Robertson Trophy since the 2009-10 season. Prior to the 2024-25 season, the USBWA had recognized just one player each week.
Each Tuesday during the regular season, designated USBWA board members will select five standouts from the 31 Division I conference players of the week to be recognized. This week's selections were chosen from a list of the conferences that named a player of the week on Monday.
Following are the five players selected for performances this past week:
Rafael Castro, George Washington (A-10): Castro averaged a double-double with 26.5 ppg, 10.0 rpg, 3.0 spg and 2.5 bpg while shooting 78 percent from the floor last week. His highly-chronicled outputs featured a career-high-tying 27 points (10-of-12 field goals, 7-7 free throws) at Richmond followed by a 26-point, 14-rebound double-double on Saturday vs. La Salle. The redshirt senior from Dover, N.J., is the only player in the A-10 to rank among the league's top 10 in field goal percentage (1st), scoring (3rd), rebounds (3rd), steals (4th) and blocks (6th). No other player is top 10 in any four of the categories and only four can claim top 10 in three of them. His highly-efficient usage is highlighted by KenPom's offensive rating of 133.9, which ranks 78th nationally and second in the A-10. He's also top-20 nationally in effective field goal percentage and true shooting percentage.
Boopie Miller, SMU (ACC): Miller scored 27 points with 12 assists in the Mustangs' 97-83 home win over then-No. 12 North Carolina on Saturday. The points-assists double-double was his fifth of the season. The senior guard from Chicago shot 10-of-13 overall, 3-of-5 from three and 4-of-5 at the free-throw line with four rebounds and a steal in the win, leading an offense that shot 60 percent for the game while hitting 14-of-27 threes. Miller recorded 12 of SMU's 23 assists and had just two turnovers out of SMU's season-low of seven. It was the first win for the Mustangs over a ranked opponent since Feb. 9, 2022 (W, 85-83 vs. No. 6 Houston).
Paulius Murauskas, St. Mary's (WCC): Murauskas led the Gaels to a trio of wins over Pepperdine, Portland and Seattle last week, notching his second WCC Player of the Week honor this season. He is the first Gael since Logan Johnson (in the 2021-22 campaign) to win the award twice in the same season. The Kaunas, Lithuania native averaged 24.3 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per contest while shooting 54 percent from the field, leading the Gaels in scoring in all three contests with progressively higher scoring. He started with a 19-point outpouring on the road at Pepperdine, matching a then-season-high eight made field goals against the Waves. He then topped it with nine field goals in the Gaels' conference home opener against Portland en route to 24 points with seven rebounds and five assists. Against Seattle, Murauskas went for 30 points and 15 rebounds, both matching his career-highs, in a come from behind victory over Seattle. He continues to lead the conference in scoring while ranking third in the nation in total points scored, second in free throw attempts and first in free throw makes.
Kahlil Singleton, Canisius (MAAC): Singleton averaged 28.5 points per game in a pair of home wins over Fairfield and Sacred Heart. The junior guard from Vancouver, Wash., scored a career-high 37 points in the Golden Griffins' win over Fairfield on Jan. 2, playing all 40 minutes shooting 11-for-16 from the field, 9-for-12 from 3-point range and 6-for-7 from the free-throw line. His 37-point performance, which is tied for the third-most points by a Canisius player at the Koessler Athletic Center, was his second game with 30-or more points scored this season. As of Jan. 5, Singleton is one of two players in the nation to have scored 30-plus points and hit eight-or more 3-point field goals in multiple games this season. On Sunday, Singleton played a key role in the Griffs' comeback win over Sacred Heart, scoring a team-high 20 points to go with four rebounds and two steals. He shot 11-for-11 from the free-throw line and his lone 3-point make with 5:08 remaining helped give the Griffs their first lead of the contest.
Chase Walker, Illinois State (MVC): In two games last week - a 73-56 win over Drake and a 73-47 win over Evansville – Walker averaged 19.5 points per game shooting 65.2 percent to help the Redbirds remain undefeated in MVC play. Against Evansville he scored a season-high 22 points, his sixth consecutive game scoring in double figures to extend his streak of scoring 15 or more points to four games, all in MVC play. The Columbus, Ohio, native, has helped ISU improve to 12-3 for the first time since the 2008-09 season and off to a 4-0 conference mark for just the seventh time in program history and first time since 2016-17.
Since the 1958-59 season, the USBWA has named a National Player of the Year. In 1998, the award was named in honor of the University of Cincinnati Hall of Famer and two-time USBWA Player of the Year Oscar Robertson. It is the nation's oldest award and the only one named after a former player.
At the conclusion of the regular season, the USBWA will name finalists for the award, which is voted on by the entire membership. The winner of the award will be announced at the 2026 Men's Final Four in Indianapolis, with the formal presentation to follow at the annual USBWA Awards Luncheon hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 800 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. It has selected an All-America team since the 1956-57 season. For more information on the USBWA and the Oscar Robertson Trophy, contact executive director Malcolm Moran at 814-574-1485.
2025-26 USBWA Men's Weekly Honors
- Week ending Nov. 9: TJ Long, Vermont; Koa Peat, Arizona; Labaron Philon Jr., Alabama; Bruce Thornton, Ohio State; Caleb Wilson, North Carolina.
- Week ending Nov. 16: Cameron Boozer, Duke; Mikel Brown, Louisville (ACC); Kingston Flemings, Houston (Big 12); Delrecco Gillespie, Kent State (Mid-American); Braden Smith, Purdue (Big Ten).
- Week ending Nov. 23: Michael Ajayi, Butler; David Coit, Maryland; MJ Collins Jr., Utah State; PJ Haggerty, Kansas State; Ethan Roberts, Penn.
- Week ending Nov. 30: Leo Beath, UC San Diego; Simeon Cottle, Kennesaw State; Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan; Darin Smith, Central Connecticut; Nick Townsend, Yale.
- Week ending Dec. 7: Cameron Boozer, Duke; Tre Carroll, Xavier; Cruz Davis, Hofstra; Aidan Mahaney, UC Santa Barbara; Milan Momcilivic, Iowa State.
- Week ending Dec. 14: Myles Colvin Jr., Wake Forest; Melvin Council Jr., Kansas; Graham Ike, Gonzaga; Dennis Parker Jr., Radford; Lamar Wilkerson, Indiana.
- Week ending Dec. 21: Christian Anderson, Texas Tech; Ja’Kobi Gillespie, Tennessee; Braden Huff, Gonzaga; Paul McNeil, NC State; Stephon Payne, Seton Hall.
- Week ending Jan. 4: Rafael Castro, George Washington; Boopie Miller, SMU; Paulius Murauskas, St. Mary's; Kahlil Singleton, Canisius; Chase Walker, Illinois State.