Over the last four years of suiting up for the Mean Green, senior guard Rubin Jones has contributed to a historic run of success for the men's basketball program.
In Jones' freshman year in 2020-21, UNT won its first conference tournament title -- and as a result made its first NCAA Tournament appearance -- since 2010. UNT also notched its first-ever March Madness win over 20th-ranked Purdue.
In his sophomore season, the Mean Green team set a new program record with 25 overall wins, made its first appearance in the National Invitation Tournament and earned its first NIT win.
Jones' junior year featured a record 25 regular season wins, 31 overall wins (breaking the previous year's record) and the team's first NIT Championship.
As a senior, Jones is a team leader in the Mean Green's inaugural season in the American Athletic Conference and has attached his name to another record. UNT's 68-55 win over Tulsa on Feb. 7 was Jones' 87th career victory, making him the winningest player in program history.
As he closes in on graduating with his bachelor of applied arts and sciences in May, Jones recognizes that even though it's his name in the record book, he didn't get there on his own.
"This is something I never imagined accomplishing and I still don't think I've fully grasped the whole thing," says Jones, who hopes to coach youth basketball when his playing days are over.
"This wouldn't be possible without my family, friends, coaches and teammates. I'm forever grateful to them, this university and all the people I've met here."
Ever wonder what it's like to be a student-athlete at UNT? Our new My Day in the Life at UNT YouTube series gives you a behind-the-scenes look at what it's like to be an orientation leader, an undergraduate researcher and even a student-athlete.
Step up to the plate with junior infielder Cierra Simon as she shares her daily routine as a member of the UNT softball team. See how many cups of coffee it takes to get her day started, why she chose to be a criminal justice major and how taking online classes helps her with time management. You'll also get to see some of the workouts and practices that get the team ready to swing for the fences.
Get a private tour of one of the top golf practice facilities in the country with Cody Winkler, a senior on the men's golf team. From the high-tech putting room to the augmented reality hitting bay to the CrossFit style workouts, you'll see all the work that goes into keeping the team's game up to par. Cody also shares why UNT's B.A.A.S. degree program works for him, how he likes to unwind at the end of the day and how he really feels about veggies.
The record number of UNT students in attendance at the Super Pit for the Jan. 25 Mean Green men's basketball win over DFW-area rival SMU. It was the first meeting between the teams in more than two decades and UNT won in thrilling fashion, edging out the Mustangs by a final score of 68-66.
Jason Burton's tenure as Mean Green women's basketball head coach is off to a historic start after the team claimed a share of the AAC Regular Season Championship, its first conference title since 1986. The team won 10 of its first 11 games, including a program record-tying, eight-game win streak. After a couple of road losses, the squad went on a seven-game win streak that ended with Burton becoming the winningest first-year head coach in program history following the team's 17th win of the season. Making the achievement all the more impressive: The record was broken with a third of the regular season remaining. In that final third of the season, the team set a new program record for regular season wins with their 20th victory Feb. 24 before breaking the record for overall wins March 2 when they improved to 22-7.
"I knew with the right people we could build this program into something special, but never imagined it would come together like this so soon," Burton says. "We've talked about two things all year -- writing our own story and bringing the best version of ourselves every day in all we do. We said if we could do that all year, we would write an incredible story."
