Dana Jones

Dana Jones (’95) reigns in the Waves Athletics history books as one of Pepperdine’s all-time great basketball players. This spring he joined the annals of the West Coast Conference when he was inducted into the organization’s Hall of Honor at the WCC Basketball Championships in March in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The 1993 WCC Player of the Year and a 2010 inductee into the Pepperdine Athletic Hall of Fame, Jones is one of just a few Waves who played in four consecutive postseasons. He is still Pepperdine’s all-time career leader in rebounds (1,031).

“Dana is a first-class guy and was a great player,” said current Pepperdine head coach Marty Wilson (’89), who was an assistant coach during Jones’ playing days. “He’s possibly the best player in Pepperdine history, from top to bottom, when you look at all the numbers—the points, rebounds, steals, blocked shots, and so on. Plus, he’s so humble. When we told him he was being inducted into our Hall of Fame, and again for the Hall of Honor, he couldn’t believe it. I told him that he earned this.”

As a member of the fourth class for the WCC Hall of Honor, Jones joins fellow Pepperdine alumni Doug Christie, basketball; Gail Hopkins (’66, MA ’74), baseball; and Wayne Wright (MA ’66), administration.

On the ocasion of his WCC recognition, Jones shared some memories and advice with Peperdine Magazine:

MEMORIES FROM THE COURT

When we won the tournament up at Santa Clara, all of our fans rushed onto the court. The crowd started running around us and we could feel them right there with us. Mostly I remember the intensity. We played a home game against San Diego during our long winning streak, and the battle was so intense it felt like the Final Four.

WAVES FANS

Our fans are one of the first things I think about when I think about Pepperdine. They knew us and we knew them. When we ate our pregame meal in the cafeteria, fans would come up to wish us luck that night. Before the games when we were getting our ankles taped, we could see everyone coming in. It was amazing to me.

TEAM SPIRIT

When I came in as a freshman, there were a lot of established players ahead of me. As they graduated, new players came in—great players—and the young ones began looking up to me. We were really close as a team, together on campus and on road trips. It contributed to our success on the court. We had no selfish players; we were all about winning.

SHARING HONORS

Being inducted into the Pepperdine Hall of Fame was a tribute to my family, and to everyone who helped me along the way. The WCC was for my coaches: Asbury, Aggers, Campbell, and current coach Wilson, who was there with me in Vegas. In my speech I couldn’t even put into words what they all meant to me. From my first day on campus I knew I was going to be in good hands.

WORDS OF WISDOM

Basketball is a team game, so the best thing current players can do is trust in each other. You just do what you can do, trust your teammates, go out and try to win every game.

ABOUT DANA JONES

• Height: 6’6”
• Position: Forward
• Hometown: Los Angeles
• Current Field: Physical therapy
• Pepperdine Highlights:
• Career finish: 1,677 points (second only to Dane Suttle)
• Only player in school history to grab more than 1,000 career rebounds
• First player ever to make the WCC Championships’ All-Tournament Team all four seasons (only one other player has done it since)

Honors:

• WCC Freshman of the Year
• WCC Player of the Year honors (junior year)
• Four consecutive All-WCC honors (three times on the first team)
• MVP of the 1994 WCC tournament

Professional Career:

• Jones went to Japan to continue his basketball career, playing for the Sumitomo Sparks, NKK Sea Hawks, and Panasonic Kangaroos
• He made the All-Star Team in 1996-97 with the Sparks and was named the Defensive Player of the Year after leading the league in steals.