Injury will prevent Memphis' Jones from playing this season

By AP
Published

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) Memphis forward Ashia Jones will miss a second straight entire season due to knee problems.

Tigers coach Melissa McFerrin announced Wednesday that Jones would be undergoing surgery ''in the near future.'' The 6-foot-1 senior from Covington, Tennessee, already had missed the entire 2016-17 season with an injured anterior cruciate ligament.

Jones averaged 23.4 points for Tennessee-Martin in 2014-15 to rank fourth among all Division I players, but she hasn't played since. She sat out the 2015-16 season due to NCAA transfer rules.

McFerrin said in a statement that the loss of Jones ''is heartbreaking, both for Ashia and for our team.'' McFerrin added that Jones ''had worked extremely hard to be healthy for this season.''