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BREAKING: Isaac Taveras Returns to Southern Miss, Enhancing Outlook for 2026-27 Season

The Golden Eagles have already had a great offseason when it comes to retooling their roster, and now, they're getting back a massive
Dalton Trigg|
@SouthernMissMBB

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – After initially entering the transfer portal in early April, following the conclusion of the Southern Miss men's 2025-26 basketball season, star guard Isaac Taveras has decided to stick around Hattiesburg for his senior year after all. Taveras took to X to announce his decision, to the delight of Southern Miss hoops fans everywhere.

Taveras was a big reason for Southern Miss securing a winning season (19-16) last year, and the team probably would've won even more than that had he not been forced to miss two months of action with a midseason hand injury. In 22 games, he averaged 15.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.2 steals while shooting 51.5 percent from the floor.

When the Sun Belt Conference tournament rolled around, Taveras raised his game even higher, averaging 17.0 points on 54.3-percent shooting overall. In a 78-70 loss to Troy in the semifinals, Taveras had arguably his best game of the year while trying to get the Golden Eagles to a conference championship game, despite needing to win five games in five nights as the No. 8 seed. He finished with a game-high 32 points, nine rebounds, three assists and four steals while shooting 12-of-16 from the floor and 8-of-13 from the free-throw line.

Although Southern Miss had already done a good job retooling its roster while thinking it had lost both Taveras and Tylik Weeks, the return of Taveras only enhances the team's chances of doing something special during the 2026-27 season. Key additions to the USM basketball roster this summer include: Max Blank, Brandon Weston, Cy Merrett, Jalyke Gaines-Wyatt, Cameron Wallace, Marcus Overstreet, Dorion Bowen, DeAndre Harvey, Mike Montano-Best, Camden Cerese, Ant Igiede and Elliot Tulip.

Along with Taveras reentering the fold, immediate impacts are expected from Wallace, Gaines-Wyatt, Igiede, Weston and Montano. Stay tuned to Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI in the coming weeks for more information on all of the new USM basketball players.

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Dalton Trigg
DALTON TRIGG

Dalton Trigg is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Southern Miss Golden Eagles on SI and the lead host of the Nasty Bunch & Beyond podcast. Trigg graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi’s College of Business and Economic Development with a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship in 2016. Trigg entered the sports journalism industry in 2017, covering the Dallas Mavericks for 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, where he continued to cover the Mavs until 2024. He also owns and hosts the Mavs Step Back Podcast, which has been going strong since 2019. You can find Trigg on all social media platforms, including X (formerly Twitter): @dalton_trigg.

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