BERKELEY – California men's basketball head coach Mark Madsen announced Friday that Northern Arizona transfer Jalen Cone has signed to play for the Golden Bears for the 2023-24 season.
 
Cone, a 5-foot-11 guard from Walkertown, North Carolina, with one year of eligibility remaining, was a two-time All-Big Sky Conference selection in two seasons played at Northern Arizona, where he averaged 18.2 points and 3.1 assists per game in 65 contests. An electric shooter from deep, Cone shot 40% (96 of 240) from behind the arc last season and has knocked down 290 3s in his career. In 112 career games played over four collegiate seasons – the first two of which were played at Virginia Tech (2019-21) – Cone has amassed 1,575 points (14.1 PPG) on 40% shooting from the floor and 39% shooting from 3-point range.
 
"Bringing Jalen to Berkeley was a top priority for our coaching staff," Madsen said. "He's an elite shooter who will boost our offense immediately and bring a mature, calming presence to our team. Jalen is also a tremendous playmaker who gets into the paint at will. Jalen's work ethic fuels his hunger to win, and that's the type of player every program benefits from. He's a true winner in every sense of the word and an outstanding teammate both on and off the court. We are incredibly excited to welcome Jalen and his family to the community and can't wait for him to arrive on campus."
 
Cone led the Lumberjacks in scoring each of the past two seasons, most recently averaging 17.6 PPG with 28 double-figure scoring efforts in 2022-23. Of the 28 double-figure games, 13 outputs were of 20 points or more, including two games over 30. Cone dropped 45 points against Southern Utah on Dec. 17, falling one point shy of the NAU single-game scoring record. Cone's first season in Flagstaff in 2021-22 saw him average career highs of 18.8 points, 3.6 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game while totaling another 28 double-figure scoring performances, 17 of which went for 20 or more.
 
Cone's collegiate career started at Virginia Tech, where he played 47 total games in two seasons while averaging 8.4 PPG and 41.1% shooting from 3. The guard played in all 32 games (three starts) as a true freshman in 2019-20 and led the ACC in 3-point percentage at 45.7%, which placed him seventh in the country. His scoring saw a bump from 8.0 PPG in 2019-20 to 9.2 as a sophomore in 2020-21, despite battling a foot injury that limited him to just 15 games. Cone tallied 19 double-figure scoring games as a Hokie and was a member of the 2020-21 ACC Men's Basketball All-Academic Team.
 
Coming out of Walkertown High School in North Carolina, Cone was a four-star prospect and rated as the No. 8 point guard in the nation by 247Sports.com. The outlet had him as a top 100 prospect, as did ESPN, who ranked him 53rd in the 2020 class.
 
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