A season after Kevin Durant was the...

A season after Kevin Durant was the national player of the year and another freshman, Greg Oden, became the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, a new group is making an impact. A weekly look at how UCLA’s Kevin Love and USC’s O.J. Mayo stack up against the best of the freshman class:

Michael Beasley, Kansas State

Season stats: 26.7 ppg, 15.0 rpg.

What he’s done lately: The 6-foot-10 forward had 24 points and 12 rebounds in a loss to Oregon and has yet to have a game without a double-double.

What’s ahead: Tonight vs. Notre Dame at New York, Sunday vs. California.

Eric Gordon, Indiana

Season stats: 24.3 ppg, 50% three-point shooting.

What he’s done lately: A shooting guard, Gordon scored 29 points in a victory over Georgia Tech and had 22 in a victory over Southern Illinois before a hard first-half fall limited him to eight points and 12 minutes Monday in an 84-72 victory over Tennessee State.

What’s ahead: Saturday vs. Kentucky.

Kevin Love, UCLA

Season stats: 17.3 ppg, 9.9 rpg.

What he’s done lately: In the Bruins’ first loss of the season against Texas, Love scored 11 points but took only six shots and had only five rebounds while playing just 24 minutes. He had 11 points and 11 rebounds against George Washington in the previous game.

What’s ahead: Saturday vs. Davidson at Anaheim.

O.J. Mayo, USC

Season stats: 21.0 ppg, 4.9 rpg.

What he’s done lately: The Trojans’ guard scored 18 points in a victory over Oklahoma and had 19 in a close loss to Kansas but made only six of 21 shots and had five turnovers.

What’s ahead: Tonight vs. Memphis at New York.

Derrick Rose, Memphis

Season stats: 17.0 ppg, 4.3 apg.

What he’s done lately: The Tigers’ point guard came off a season-low four-point performance to score 19 points and contribute 12 assists in an easy victory over Austin Peay.

What’s ahead: Tonight vs. USC.