One of the shocking transfers of the offseason at Oklahoma happened away from the football field.
Rising guard Jamal Bieniemy showed a lot of promise at the end of his freshman season. His sophomore year at Oklahoma didn’t go as planned, but his defense and length made life tough for opposing guards.
Bieniemy shockingly hit the transfer portal on April 10. On May 21, the former Oklahoma guard has reportedly ended up at UTEP.
UTEP has landed Oklahoma transfer Jamal Bieniemy, source told @Stadium. Great pickup for Rodney Terry & Co.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) May 21, 2020
The Katy, Texas, native started in 17 games as a freshman and then in 30 of 31 games as a sophomore in 2019-20. Bieniemy shot 40.3 percent from the 3-point line in 2018-19, but that number fell to a lackluster 25.3 percent in 2019-20. He averaged just .3 more points (5.2) as a sophomore than as a freshman (4.9).
Despite that, Bieniemy brought a presence on the defensive end of the court to Oklahoma. UTEP went above .500 for the first time since 2015-16 last season. The Miners have won 36 games in the last three seasons.
The Sooners replaced Bieniemy with North Texas transfer Umoja Gibson and Cal State Northridge guard Elijah Harkless this offseason.