SAN DIEGO - San Diego State men's basketball head coach Brian Dutcher announced today that forward Jalen McDaniels will forego his remaining college eligibility and will enter professional basketball. McDaniels, who last month completed his sophomore season of eligibility, plans to hire an agent, ending his collegiate career.
"We appreciate the positive contributions Jalen made to our program and to the University," head coach Brian Dutcher said. "Jalen now has the opportunity to pursue his life-long goal of playing in the National Basketball Association. We wish him and his family well."
"I want to thank San Diego State University, particularly the coaching staff, my teammates and our amazing fans, for guiding and supporting me both on and off the court," McDaniels said. "These past three seasons I have matured as a person and a basketball player. I cherish the memories I have made with my teammates and the relationships that I will carry with me for the rest of my life."
After redshirting during the 2016-17 campaign, McDaniels averaged 10.5 points and 7.5 rebounds on San Diego State's Mountain West tournament championship team in 2017-18. He played in 33 games and made 21 starts, shooting 58.6 percent from the field en route to earning third-team all-league honors by the media and all-conference honorable mention from the coaches.
This past season, McDaniels was second on the team in scoring (15.9) and led the team in rebounding (8.3). He shot 46.6 percent from the floor, playing and starting in all 34 games during the season. The sophomore earned first-team all-district honors by the NABC and second-team all-conference accolades by both the coaches and the media polls. Twice this season McDaniels earned Mountain West Player of the Week honors and the sophomore was named to the conference's all-tournament team.
For his 67-game career, which included 55 starting assignments, McDaniels averaged 13.2 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 27.9 minutes. He shot 50.4 percent from the field, including 29.8 percent from three-point range, and 75.8 percent from the free-throw line. McDaniels also added 35 blocked shots and 65 steals during his time on The Mesa.