L.J. Rose is granted a waiver to play immediately at Houston

University of Houston sophomore guard L.J. Rose will be eligible to compete for the Cougars during the 2013-14 season after the NCAA recently granted his waiver request.

Rose will have three years of eligibility remaining with the start of the 2013-14 season. He and his Houston teammates return to classes for the fall semester on Monday, Aug. 26.

“We are extremely grateful that the NCAA has granted L.J.’s request. Family is so important, and this gives everyone in L.J.’s family the best opportunity to watch him play,” head coach James Dickey said. “We look forward to the start of the 2013-14 season with L.J. as a member of our program.”

Four members of the 2013-14 Houston Men’s Basketball team were ranked among the nation’s top 100 prospects by ESPN. Sophomore guard Danuel House was ranked No. 15 in 2012, while redshirt freshman guard Danrad Knowles was listed at No. 56 in 2012. Rose came in at No. 63 in 2012, and junior forward TaShawn Thomas stood at No. 92 in 2011.

Rose, who was one of the nation’s top prep players out of Westbury Christian, competed at Baylor during the 2012-13 season. The 6-foot-4, 190-pound guard played in 33 games for a team that won the NIT championship. He posted career highs with 14 points, 12 assists, three rebounds and two steals in a win against Hardin-Simmons in mid-January and dished out five assists in 16 minutes at Big 12 rival Iowa State in early February.

Rose, who is a Houston native, was ranked among the nation’s top-75 players by Scout.com, ESPN, MaxPreps.com and Rivals.com. As a senior in 2011-12, he led the Wildcats to the TAPPS 4A state championship game, scoring 17 points on the way to All-Tournament honors.

Before attending Westbury Christian, Rose competed for his first three high school seasons at Second Baptist School. There, he earned All-District 4 and Class 4A All-State honors as a freshman and again as a sophomore.

He also owns international experience on his resume. Rose was a member of the U16 National Team that won the gold medal at the FIBA Americas Championship in Argentina.

The Rose family is no stranger to the Houston program. His father, Lynden, lettered for the Cougars’ Phi Slama Jama teams from 1980 to 1982 and was a sixth-round draft pick by the Los Angeles Lakers in 1982. His father also served on the UH Board of Regents from 2004 to 2009, while his uncle, Cecile Rose, scored more than 1,200 points in 114 games from 1974 to 1978.

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