B.J. Edwards granted TRO, will be eligible for OU basketball opener

NORMAN — Oklahoma men’s basketball guard B.J. Edwards was granted a temporary restraining order from Cleveland County District Judge Michael Tupper on Friday, making him temporarily eligible for a fifth season.

Meaning, Edwards — who has been practicing every day with the Sooners — is eligible to play in OU’s season opener against East Texas A&M.

Edwards, along with other athletes, were added as new plaintiffs Friday to the existing TRO that granted Sooners defensive tackle Danny Saili and first baseman Dayton Tockey temporary eligibility Sept. 3.

At the center of the lawsuit is the NCAA’s newly adopted “Five-for-Five Rule,” which the organization’s governance structure voted to approve this summer. The rule gives current DI athletes five years to compete in NCAA sports following their high school graduation.

The plaintiffs contend the NCAA has excluded athletes from the high school graduating class of 2022.

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Edwards had been ineligible for the past two months after the Tennessee Court of Appeals issued an order Aug. 26 staying the injunction granted to him and other plaintiff athletes. 

The SMU transfer started the Mustangs’ first 28 games last season before missing the rest of the year due to injury. Edwards averaged 12.7 points, 5.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists last season and was the only player nationally with three games of 20 points, five rebounds, five assists and five steals.

Edwards has played in 110 collegiate games, making 93 starts. He enters this season having totaled 841 points, 440 rebounds, 370 assists and 181 steals during his career at Tennessee and SMU.

He was a two-time ACC All-Defensive Team member with the Mustangs.

OU tips its season against the Lions at 7 p.m. Monday at Lloyd Noble Center. The Sooners were picked to finish 12th in the SEC in the conference’s preseason poll.

“I see a physical guard,” OU coach Porter Moser said this week. “He can put your chest on somebody and really level somebody off. An SEC athlete. Talking to many ACC coaches that coached against them, they said we 100% talked about BJ Edwards’ defensive presence in our scouting meetings. 

“He has a presence defensively. He does a little bit of everything.”

Colton Sulley covers the Oklahoma Sooners for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Colton? He can be reached at csulley@oklahoman.com or on X/Twitter at @colton_sulley. Support Colton’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing adigital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: B.J. Edwards granted TRO, will be eligible for OU basketball opener