The USC sophomore forward began the season as a reserve, but as Bennie Boatwright struggled with a foot injury during nonconference play and again after a couple Pac-12 Conference games, Rakocevic made his way into the starting lineup.
Even when Boatwright, who was among the team's leading scorers, returned from his injury, coach Andy Enfield elected to keep Rakocevic as a starter.
With Boatwright now sidelined for the season because of a knee injury, Rakocevic is expected to make his 10th consecutive start Saturday when USC (21-9 overall and 12-5 in conference) plays UCLA (19-10, 10-7) at the Galen Center in the regular-season finale for both teams.