The American Conference Player of the Year is one of three players outside of the power conferences invited
TAMPA, MAY 1, 2026 – South Florida Men's Basketball standout
Izaiyah Nelson has been invited to participate in the 2026 AWS NBA Draft
Combine.
The first player in American Conference history to earn Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year honors in the same season, Nelson was among 73 players invited to the Combine and one of just three college players invited from outside the power conferences. He is the first USF player invited to the NBA Draft Combine since Dominique Jones in 2010.
The annual NBA Draft Combine will take place May 10-17 at Wintrust Arena and the Marriott Marquis in Chicago. The NBA Draft will be held June 23-24 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Nelson helped lead the Bulls to a program record-tying 25 wins, conference regular-season and tournament titles, and the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2012. The only unanimous First Team All-Conference selection and a First Team All-Southeast District pick, Nelson averaged 15.9 points and 9.6 rebounds a game on the year and logged 48 blocks and 56 steals. The 6-10 forward ranked ninth in the NCAA with 18 double-doubles, tying him for the second-most in a single season in program history.
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About USF Men's Basketball
South Florida men's basketball named Chris Mack as the program's 13th head coach on March 25, 2026. Mack came to Tampa after a pair of 20-win seasons at the College of Charleston. With more than 300 career wins, he brought a career winning percentage of nearly 68 percent to South Florida, including 12 20-win seasons and nine NCAA Tournament appearances. He led both Xavier and Louisville to the NCAA Tournament and made four Sweet 16 appearances and one Elite Eight with Xavier.
The program, entering its 56th season in 2026-27, won American Conference regular-season championships in 2024 and 2026 and claimed the conference tournament title in 2026. The Bulls have made 14 postseason appearances, including four NCAA Tournaments (the last in 2026), nine NITs, and a CBI championship in 2019. Three former Bulls players – Chucky Atkins, Charlie Bradley, and Rodenko Dobras – have had their jerseys retired and are members of the USF Athletic Hall of Fame, while two coaches – Amir Abdur-Rahim (2023-24) and Bobby Paschal (1986-96) – join them in the Hall of Fame.
The Bulls play their home games at the 10,400-seat Yuengling Center on the USF Tampa campus.
– #GoBulls –
