USC Trojans guard Alijah Arenas’ first game of college basketball may be bigger than anticipated, given recent reports of who may be present. On Wednesday, Jan. 21, Arenas is making his rookie debut in the 2025-26 season for coach Eric Musselman‘s Trojans against coach Chris Collins’ Northwestern Wildcats at the former’s home court, the Galen Center in Los Angeles, California.
In a video posted by collegiate hoops reporter Krysten Peek to her X/Twitter account, Arenas is seen warming up before his debut. The eight-second clip shows Arenas taking a mid-range jumper in the left corner, draining it, and going back to his practice drill’s lines. Peek also confirmed that there were several NBA scouts and executives present for Arenas’ much-awaited debut.
Arenas is one of the most highly-touted prospects in the freshman class of 2026. If he does decide to forego his remaining years of college eligibility after this campaign, he is already expected to be a first-round pick in this year’s NBA Draft. Nevertheless, Arenas will still need to show his prowess at the collegiate level, given that he has missed the past couple of months due to injury.
Arenas’ debut comes after he was cleared by doctors to play after going through his recovery process with his torn meniscus that he suffered during a USC practice session in July 2025. Arenas has used the past six months to recover from it, but before the injury, he had already suffered a major setback. In April 2025, Arenas crashed his car and was hospitalized.
He was placed in an induced coma to recover from his injuries and smoke inhalation, and has made a full recovery before his knee injury.
Alijah Arenas Knocks Down The Corner Mid-Range Jumper For His First Shot Of College Basketball
Alijah Arenas was quickly inserted into the starting lineup by coach Eric Musselman for the USC Trojans’ game against the Northwestern Wildcats on Wednesday.
In what was seemingly foreshadowed from Krysten Peek’s video, Arenas’ first-ever college basket came from a mid-range jumper from the right corner. At the 16:28 mark of the first period, Arenas faked driving left before pulling up on his right to give USC an early 8-7 lead.
Read More: Alijah Arenas’ Mom Laura Govan Can’t Keep Calm as USC Star Announces NCAA Debut Date Following Horrific Crash
Also Read: IN PICS: Alijah Arenas’ Mom Laura Govan Turns Heads In Sleek All-White Outfit
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