Tyrique Jones: From Xavier Star To EuroLeague Standout
Explore the rise of Tyrique Jones, a powerful forward from Connecticut who dominated at Xavier and became a top performer in Europe with teams like Anadolu Efes and Partizan Belgrade.
Oct 27, 202513.1K Shares175.9K Views
Tyrique Jonesgrew up in Bloomfield, Connecticut. He played football first as a tight end and defensive end. But when he went to Bloomfield High School, he switched to basketball and began to focus on that sport.
In his junior year, he averaged 10.6 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 3.1 blocks per game. He led his team to the Class S state semifinals and earned First Team All State honors from the Hartford Courant. He also played Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball for the New York Rens and Expressions Elite teams.
For his senior year, Tyrique transferred to Vermont Academy in Saxtons River, Vermont. There he averaged 13.2 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. He helped his team reach the Class AA NEPSAC Finals and was named to the All NEPSAC Second Team.
Tyrique stayed for an extra postgraduate season at Vermont Academy. In that year, he averaged 19.8 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.2 blocks, 1.5 steals, and 1.7 assists per game. He guided the team to its first ever NEPSAC title and earned All NEPSAC First Team honors.
Tyrique was rated a four star recruit by ESPN and Rivals, and a three star recruit by 247Sports. On June 29, 2015, he chose to play college basketball at Xavier University, over other offers from schools like Florida State, Cincinnati, and Texas Tech.
College Career
Tyrique Jones played college basketball at Xavier University from 2016 to 2020. In his freshman season, he appeared in 37 games and started 13 of them. He averaged 4.2 points and 3.1 rebounds per game while shooting nearly 60 percent from the field. As a sophomore, he played in 32 games with 19 starts and improved his stats to 7.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, again shooting over 60 percent. In his junior year, he became a regular starter in 31 out of 34 games. He averaged 11.3 points, 7.7 rebounds, and nearly 1 block per game, with a shooting percentage of about 62 percent.
Jones had his best year as a senior in the 2019–2020 season. He started all 32 games and averaged 14.0 points and 11.1 rebounds per game. He also added 1.5 assists and 1.1 blocks per game, with a field goal percentage close to 56 percent. That season, he led the Big East Conference in rebounding. His performance earned him spots on the All-Big East Second Team and the NABC All-District Second Team. He was also named Big East Player of the Week during one standout week in which he averaged 16.0 points and 16.5 rebounds. By the end of his college career, Jones had scored 1,211 total points and collected 874 rebounds, putting him among the top players in Xavier’s school history.
Professional Career
Tyrique Jones began his pro basketball career in September 2020 when he signed with Wonju DB Promy in South Korea. A few months later, on December 31, 2020, he moved to Israel and joined Hapoel Tel Aviv, where he ranked third in the league in blocks per game (1.4), sixth in offensive rebounds (2.6), and fifth in two point field goal percentage (67.2%).
In summer 2021, he played in the NBA Summer League with the Phoenix Suns before signing with Victoria Libertas Pesaro in Italy on August 21, 2021. The next step was Turkey, on July 23, 2022, he signed with Türk Telekom in the Turkish top league, where he earned MVP honors for the 2022–23 season after averaging about 14.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game, and was named to the All EuroCup Second Team with averages of 12.7 points and 8.0 rebounds. Continuing his rise, he joined Anadolu Efes in June 2023 on a two year deal, following his Türk Telekom coach.
Then on August 20, 2024, he signed with Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade in Serbia, competing in both the ABA League and EuroLeague. In the 2024–25 EuroLeague season with Partizan, he averaged a career high 11.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game over 32 games, helped the team win the ABA League and Serbian national titles, and led the EuroLeague in offensive rebounds (2.8 per game).
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