By St. Louis forward Robbie Avila is getting another season of college basketball.
Avila was granted a preliminary injunction Thursday by St. Louis City Circuit Court Judge Jason Sengheiser that allows him to play for the Billikens this season. As part of the injunction, Sengheiser says that SLU can have a 16th roster spot for Avila and that the order is effective until a trial is held.
Any trial wouldn't likely be held for months, meaning Avila could be eligible for the entirety of the 2026-27 season and will be in uniform on Friday night when St. Louis plays Missouri.
Like many players from the high school class of 2022 across the country, Avila took to court for a fifth season of eligibility after exhausting four seasons of eligibility in four seasons ahead of the NCAA's five-in-five announcement this summer. After his college career was seemingly over this spring when St. Louis was eliminated from the NCAA tournament, Avila played for the Los Angeles Lakers' Summer League team but did not sign a contract with the franchise.
That scenario is not uncommon among basketball players who have asked for and received a fifth year of eligibility. Missouri's Mark Mitchell, who will be on the court Friday night as well, played for the Denver Nuggets' Summer League team.
This will be Avila's third season with the Billikens after transferring to SLU when Josh Schertz, his coach at Indiana State, became the team's head coach. After averaging 17.3 points as a junior, Avila averaged 12.8 points per game in 2025-26 while also playing eight minutes fewer per game. He shot 41% from behind the arc on nearly five attempts per game and was the 2025-26 Atlantic-10 Player of the Year.
SLU went 29-6 a season ago and won the A-10 regular season title. That season was good enough for a No. 9 seed in the NCAA tournament, where the Billikens lost in the second round to eventual national champion Michigan.
