FARMINGTON, Utah (December 20, 2022) – After a 45-point output last Saturday at Southern Utah, Northern Arizona University men's basketball player
Jalen Cone has been named Big Sky Conference Player of the Week for the first time in his career. The honor was announced by the conference office on Tuesday afternoon.
The historical performance was one-point off of NAU's single-game scoring record of 46 points, set on Jan. 7, 1956 by Frank Turley against Western New Mexico. The junior is the first Lumberjack to score over 40 points in a game since Cory Schwab dropped 43 at Cal Poly on Dec. 2, 2000. There are only two other 40-plus point performances in program history. Cone's output is also the 14
th-most in single-game Big Sky history, becoming the first player since 2019 conference wide to score at least 40 points in a contest.
Although the Lumberjacks fell in overtime to the Thunderbirds by a score of 106-101, Cone hit the game-tying shot with 1.9 seconds left in regulation. It was the second-straight week that the Walkertown, N.C. native had hit the game-tying shot to send a contest into overtime, also achieving the feat against Utah Valley on Dec. 10.
With 40 of his points coming in regulation, Cone was 18-of-27 from the field (.667), 6-of-11 from three-point range (.545) and 3-of-5 from the charity stripe. He also added five rebounds, an assist and a steal in 38 minutes of action.
His point total was the most scored in the NCAA that day and remains the highest output scored by a player across all of Division I so far this season along with Northern Kentucky's Marques Warrick. His 18 field goals made is also the most made in Division I this year, also along with Warrick, and his 27 field goal attempts is tied for fourth.
Cone's 18 field goals tied a single-game school record that was also set by Turley in 1956, marking a new career-high. His 27 attempts tied for fourth all-time, but Cone already owns NAU's single-game field goal attempts record with 31 set back on Dec. 11, 2021, at South Dakota.
Cone has scored in double figures in nine out of 13 contests so far this year, including five performances with 20-or-more points and two with 30-or-more. He has scored at least 20 points in three-straight games. In the past six games, he's scored in double figures five times, including his previous career-high of 38 points against Abilene Christian on Dec. 27. That point total ranks seventh all-time in NAU single-game history.
Averaging 17.8 points per game, Cone ranks third in the Big Sky in scoring. He is also 10
th in field goal percentage (78-187, .417), fourth in three-point field goal percentage (33-93, .355), and 11
th in free throw percentage (43-54, .796). Cone has made at least three three-pointers in six games this year, ranking fourth in the Big Sky with 2.5 triples per game.
On a national level, Cone ranks 11
th in the NCAA in field goal attempts with 187 and is 37
th in field goals made with 78. He is 23
rd in total points (232) and 68
th in points per game. He is also 18
th in three-point attempts and 41
st in total three-pointers.
Last season, Cone scored 602 points for the second-most in NAU single-season program history. A transfer from Virginia Tech and in his second year with the Lumberjacks, Cone has 1,227 career points between the two programs and needs 166 more points to exclusively join NAU's 1,000-point club. With 126 made three-pointers at NAU, Cone needs 19 more to crack the program's career three-pointer top-ten list.
After today's honor, Cone is the first Lumberjack men's basketball player to earn Player of the Week honors since Cameron Shelton received the nod on Jan. 4, 2021. Cone was named All-Big Sky third team a year ago and was named to the preseason All-Big Sky team prior to the start of the 2022-23 season.
Northern Arizona resumes action after the holidays on Dec. 29 at Idaho State to start Big Sky play. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. Mountain Standard time. The Lumberjacks conclude their road trip, and 2022, at Weber State on Dec. 31 at 2 p.m. MST. NAU returns home on Jan. 5 and Jan. 7 to host Montana and Montana State at Findlay Toyota Court in the Skydome.
