She’s Here: Alesya Talkouskaya Arrives at USC, Completing the Trojans’ 12-Player Roster
Alesya Talkouskaya is finally in Los Angeles, and I have to say, this one makes me smile. We have been talking about her for weeks, waiting for everything to be completed and wondering when she would finally make it to USC. Well, the wait is over. Alesya has arrived, she has been inside the Galen Center, and USC now officially has its complete 12 player roster for the 2026 to 27 seasons. Everybody is here. Practice is already underway, the season is getting closer, and Lindsay Gottlieb finally has the entire group together.
Alesya comes to USC from Belarus after playing senior level basketball with Horizont Minsk. At only 17 years old, she was already competing against older players and averaged 9.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.8 steals per game last season. The rebounding number is the one that always catches my attention. For a guard and wing player to pull down more than six rebounds a game tells me she likes to get involved. She is not just standing outside waiting for somebody to pass her the ball. She gets into the action, goes after rebounds, gets her hands into passing lanes and finds different ways to help her team.
That could be a really nice fit for USC because she does not have to come in trying to be the star. This roster already has plenty of star power. JuJu Watkins is back. Jazzy Davidson is back. Kennedy Smith is back. Saniyah Hall is coming in, and there is talent everywhere you look. Alesya gets the chance to come in, learn, compete and let her role develop naturally. That is a pretty good situation for a 17 year old who is moving across the world and adjusting to a completely different level of basketball. She can settle in, learn USC’s system, get used to the speed and physicality of the college game, and compete every day against some very good basketball players.
What I really enjoy about her arrival is what it says about this USC roster as a whole. This team has become truly international. Sitaya Fagan comes from Australia. Pania Davis is from Australia. Sara Okeke developed in Spain. Now Alesya comes in from Belarus. That is a lot of different basketball experiences coming together in one gym in Los Angeles. I love that. Basketball is a global game, and USC is clearly willing to go wherever the talent is. These players have grown up in different systems, played different styles and learned the game in different ways. Now they all have to come together and become one team.
There is also something pretty special about young women from different parts of the world choosing USC. Alesya did not just choose a basketball program. She chose to leave home, move to another country, come to Los Angeles and become part of what Lindsay Gottlieb is building. That is a big decision for anybody, especially at 17. Now she gets the chance to find out what her role can become. Maybe she helps right away. Maybe it takes a little time. Maybe we see her grow throughout the season. That is part of the fun. Nobody needs to put pressure on her to have everything figured out the minute she walks into practice.
For USC fans, the biggest news right now is simple. She is here, and the roster is complete. Twelve players are now in place. Practice is moving forward. The season is getting closer. All the pieces that USC has been putting together over the offseason are finally in the gym together, and that is when things start to feel real.
Welcome to Los Angeles, Alesya. Welcome to USC. Fight On.
Click the link below to check out the video and hear more about Alesya, her game and what she could bring to USC this season.
