After an exhilarating 64-63 victory over Missouri, LSU basketball seems to have found its footing by winning its fourth consecutive home conference game.
Junior transfer Daryl Edwards drew a game changing charge late in the second half that helped the Tigers maintain the slight lead. Those are just the kind of plays he makes for his teammates.
“He has that competitive edge and it rubs off on a lot of guys,” sophomore guard Skylar Mays said. “Just by the way he carries himself with a lot of pride.”
Edwards grew up in Fresno, California, and attended high schools in Fresno, Houston, Florida and North Carolina before heading back to Florida forjunior college basketball.
Only one junior college recruited Edwards out of high school, which gives him an extra chip on his shoulder. Coach Will Wade had Edwards on his radar for a while, dating back to his days as head coach of Chattanooga.
“I’ve known him for a very long time,” Wade said. “He went to high school, prep school and then junior college so he’s an old cat.”
Edwards said growing up in Fresno is not like growing up in California. The junior guard compared the city of Fresno being closer to Baton Rouge than any California coastal city.
“When you say California, they think of the beach or the palm trees,” Edwards said. “Fresno has none of that.”
Edwards’s toughness was touched on by Wade before the Missouri game and has showed over the past few games.
Over the last five contests, Edwards has averaged 11 points per game and has cemented himself in the starting lineup. In a losing effort to Alabama, Edwards scored a career-high 21 points on 80 percent shooting.
“He’s like the lead dog,” Wade said. “He’s got a way about him that he’s able to make competitive plays and turned into a pretty good defender for us. It’s not even close. He’s our most competitive guy. We’ve gotta go get another JUCO kid like him. He ain’t perfect, but he gives us everything he’s got every night.”
Edwards believes it is his job to provide as much energy as he can when called upon. If the tone of the game is already high energy, Edwards said his goal is to simply fit in where needed.
“I have to prove myself every time down the court,” Edwards said. “My main focus now is stopping the best guard with every team we play. If I can get some open looks I’ll be able to knock some shots down so that’s what I plan to do.”

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Dianna Roxas

LSU junior guard Daryl Edwards (5) scores during the Tigers’ 77-63 win against Texas A&M on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, in the PMAC.