LOOK: Brandon Murray is free and finally contributing to Ole Miss basketball’s hot start
The wait is over for Ole Miss guard Brandon Murray.
A U.S. District Judge on Wednesday issued a temporary restraining order against the NCAA. The TRO was converted to a preliminary injunction a day later, meaning all two-time transfers in college basketball were made immediately eligible to play for the rest of the season.
Among them? Murray, the Ole Miss guard/wing and final, pressing personnel matter for the Rebels.
Ole Miss improved to 10-0 on the season with an 88-78 win over Cal in the 2023 Hall of Fame Series in San Antonio on Saturday. Murray made his debut and scored three points in 17 minutes. He added four assists, a block and a rebound. He played some point guard, too, and in relief of fellow transfer and dynamic first-year Rebel Jaylon Murray. Ole Miss, in the off-season, signed one of the nation’s best transfer classes.
“Great to be back,” Murray said afterwards. “San Antonio, Texas. Good little vibes. Got a little dub (win). 10-0. Rank us.”
The clearance of Brandon Murray, previously of LSU and Georgetown, comes a few weeks after the NCAA granted Moussa Cisse a successful waiver. Cisse, like Jaylon Murray, is another new teammate of Brandon Murray’s at Ole Miss. He’s a former five-star and Top 20 prospect.
Cisse played previously at both Memphis and Oklahoma State.
“Both guys, Moussa and Brandon, have attacked this situation, I think, with a lot of professionalism and a lot of maturity,” Beard said previously. “These guys are doing a great job of controlling what they can control — whether it’s practice or the individual workout or the academic piece of being a student-athlete.”
Murray has been with the Rebels since the spring.
He went through months of practices, both official and unofficial. However, he missed the first nine games as he awaited word on his eligibility. He’d already used his one-year, penalty-free transfer. So, Murray spent game days in street clothes.
The 6-foot-5, 210-pound Murray averaged 13.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists in his only season as a Hoya a year ago. He began his career at rival LSU, where he started 32 of 33 games and scored double-digit points 16 times.
Murray averaged 10 points, three rebounds and 1.9 assists as an All-SEC selection as a freshman. He entered the portal after the Tigers moved on from long-time coach Will Wade.
“I chose Ole Miss because of the mission and plan that coach Beard and staff have,” Murray told On3 at the time of his commitment. “I’ve never met a group of coaches with chips on their shoulder. It didn’t feel like I was getting recruited. It was more of the staff opening up and inviting me to the family.”
Murray is a former four-star recruit.
He was the nation’s No. 80 overall player in the 2021 class and held additional notable offers from Auburn, DePaul, Virginia Tech and Wichita State.
Ole Miss set a new season-best in points in the win over Cal. Beard has now led three separates programs to 10-0 starts to open a season in his career. The Rebels next host Troy on Tuesday at 6 p.m. CT.
“(Murray) has an innate ability to put the ball in the basket and can do so from any level on the floor,” On3 national CBB analyst Jamie Shaw said. “He’s aggressive in the passing lanes, and that leads to some defense-to-offense transition points as well. Coming on to a team that finished 175th in points scored per game and 170th in threes made on the season, Murray should be able to boost those numbers.”
Here’s a look at Murray’s Ole Miss debut, with pictures provided by Ole Miss Athletics.
