Marquette standout Kam Jones will return to the program for his senior season in 2024-25, he announced on social media Thursday. The 6-foot-4 guard led the Golden Eagles in scoring at 17.2 points per game last season, helping the team to a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
— Kameron Jones (@csgkam) April 11, 2024
Marquette lost to NC State in the Sweet 16, finishing with an overall record of 27-10.
After earning second-team All Big East honors as a sophomore in 2022-23, Jones upped his scoring, assist and shooting averages in year three for the Golden Eagles, including 40.6 percent from beyond the arc.
The announcement is a significant boost to Marquette and coach Shaka Smart after seniors Tyler Kolek and Oso Ighodaro both recently declared for the NBA Draft. Jones, projected as either a late first-round or second-round selection had he entered the draft, is a likely candidate for preseason All-American and Big East Player of the Year next season.
Getting Jones back should lock the Golden Eagles in as a preseason top-20 pick that can contend with UConn in the Big East next season. Marquette’s leading scorer will likely assume more on-ball responsibilities in the wake of Kolek’s departure. This keeps a bona fide, three-level scorer and comfortable ball-handler in the fold for Smart.
Alongside Jones, the Golden Eagles expect to return forwards David Joplin and Ben Gold as well as guards Stevie Mitchell and Chase Ross, and also signed a pair of four-star high school prospects in Damarius Owens and Royce Parham to the 2024 recruiting class.
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(Photo: Katie Stratman / USA Today)
