USC MBB Lands Evansville Forward Joshua Hughes in Transfer Portal

USC men’s basketball secured former Evansville forward Joshua Hughes in the transfer portal on Thursday, according to his agent Jonathon Mines of Rise Sports Management.

Go Trojans ⚔️

Joshua Hughes 🇦🇺 signs with @USC_Hoops in the Big10 conference for the 2026-27 season. pic.twitter.com/XzQ9ZPmKAO

— Jonathon Mines (@jonathonmines) April 30, 2026

Hughes is a rising senior with one season of NCAA eligibility remaining. He played the first three seasons of his collegiate career at Evansville and had been a full-time starter for the Purple Aces for the last two seasons.

The 6-foot-10 forward has experience competing internationally with Australia. Hughes played semi-professional ball in the NBL1 before joining Evansville in 2023 and represented Australia in the U17 World Cup in 2022.

Hughes will bring size and veteran experience to USC’s younger squad next season.

Last season, Hughes averaged 9.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 0.4 blocks across 27.6 minutes in 32 games with the Purple Aces. Averaging 9.3 points per game was a career-high for Hughes, who averaged 7.2 points as a sophomore and 6.6 as a freshman.

Nov 4, 2025; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Evansville Purple Aces forward Joshua Hughes (11) shoots the ball while Purdue Boilermakers forward Trey Kaufman-Renn (4) defends in the first half at Mackey Arena. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

USC’s Roster Next Season

Hughes joins USC as the fourth transfer portal addition this offseason. The Trojans have also acquired Georgetown guard KJ Lewis, UConn center Eric Reibe and Colgate guard Jalen Cox.