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Cristina Jones surprises the coach she followed to Cal State Fullerton

March 13, 2026

To be honest, nobody saw this coming.

Not John Bonner, who — as the coach who recruited Cristina Jones to Cal State Dominguez Hills and subsequently, Cal State Fullerton — you would expect to possess a little of the savant gene. Successful coaches in every sport at every level usually gaze into the crystal ball when evaluating a player. What is their ceiling? When can we expect to see that ceiling? What will it take to arrive at that ceiling?

In Jones’ case, the ceiling just expanded. And it shows no signs of receding because Jones is pushing it upward every time she steps onto the court. Meanwhile, Bonner’s crystal ball needs a cleaning.

“At Dominguez Hills, she was our seventh option,” Bonner said. “I wasn’t sure how her impact would be at this level because she made her mark at Dominiguez Hills with hustle, and we weren’t sure how that would transfer here. When she got here, we figured she’d be a defensive presence, covering the other team’s best players, and we had the mindset we’d develop her other skills and see where we are in two years.

“She must have had different plans.”

Did she ever. Jones has shaken up whatever crystal ball you pull off the shelf as much as she’s shaken up the Titans women’s basketball team this year. Whatever ceiling the sophomore forward brought with her from Division II CSUDH to Division I CSUF is no longer valid because Jones has helped validate the Titans quicker than anyone expected.

The seventh option at a Division II program is the No. 1 option for a resurgent Titans’ team that is battling for a top four seed in the upcoming Big West conference tournament. Jones entered March as one of the conference’s marquee players. She’s sixth in the conference in scoring (16.2 points per game), second in rebounding (9.7) and leads the conference in steals (3.8) — quite the feat for a forward. Jones is also fifth in field goal percentage, hitting 46.5% of her shots.

Here’s where the crystal ball needs a couple reset knocks. Jones is fifth in the nation in steals and 42nd in rebounds. Her 35-point game in a 92-87 double-overtime win over Cal State Bakersfield Feb. 7 represented the second highest point total by a Big West player this season. She has four of the top six individual rebound totals by a conference player, punctuated by her 21-rebound outing against Cal State Bakersfield Feb. 21.

Which brings us to where the crystal ball short-circuits for good. Jones went off for 35 points and 20 rebounds in that Feb. 7, double-OT win, one where she played all 50 minutes. Two weeks later, in the sequel at Titan Gym, she torched the Roadrunners for 21 points and 21 rebounds. That’s two 20/20 games in two weeks, which requires some context to clearly illustrate how Jones has rewritten all expectations concerning her considerable game.

Going into this season, there have been four 20/20 games in program history, the last by Erin Whiteside, who dismantled San Jose State for 26 points and 21 rebounds. That came 26 years ago, or six years before Jones was born. To drop the mic on that feat, Jones has two of the program’s six 20/20 games. And she accomplished that in 14 days.

“When you go into battle, you know what kind of weapons you have and our team knows we have a Cristina Jones and everyone else doesn’t,” Bonner said. “And because of that, we have a shot every time we walk onto the floor.”

Truth be told, there were indications that Jones could eventually — emphasis on “eventually”— be a key player, if not the key player. She was the California Collegiate Athletic Association Freshman of the Year for a Toros’ team that reached the NCAA Division II championship game, starting 25 of 26 games and averaging 11.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.4 steals.

“I had one of the best experiences coming off the bench with great players, and having those senior players on my team helped build my confidence,” she said. “I was happy to get to play, because I came in not expecting to get minutes because I was a freshman. But that support I got from the players and Coach Bonner helped me grow to where I am now at Fullerton. I had the built-in necessities I needed when I came in.

“It’s been a change and difficult at times, but the more I work on my skills being on the court and being confident, the more I see how it helps my game. … It looked like an easy transition, but it took a lot of hard work behind the scenes. I had to spend a lot of time in the weight room getting stronger and preparing for the Big West. I had to work harder to get the ability to finish over tall people and the confidence to go up and score. There’s been a lot of challenges, and I can see how it looks easier than it is. But that’s because of all the work I do at practice and in the weight room.”

That transition happened right after Jones followed Bonner to CSUF in May, with the weight room playing an integral part. Jones said she barely lifted weights at Lakewood High and somewhat more at CSUDH. But when she arrived at Fullerton, Jones was introduced to the weight room. She would make regular visits three times a week.

And Bonner gushed expansively about her intangibles, the way she emphasizes defense and de-emphasizes feeding her the ball or running plays for her. Walk into a practice and you’ll inevitably see Jones throw her 5-foot-10 frame around the court diving for loose balls like the 12th player on the bench.

“We tell her you’re doing too much, but that’s who she is. She has an elite motor,” Bonner said.

That motor doesn’t take much winding up. Jones takes the approach that the points will come. But they’ll come along for the ride because everything else you don’t see drives her overall game.

“Even though I’m the leading scorer, I appreciate going for every loose ball, putting heavy pressure on defense and attacking the boards. Those are the moments that make my game special because those are the things most people don’t want to do,” she said. “I’m focusing on doing the dirty work so we can get the win. I approach my game doing those little things.”

Eventually, you see those little things. But what you never see — and what no crystal ball can ever show you — are Jones’ meetings with her teammates to build their confidence and find ways to connect on and off the court. Jones may be a business major, but her primary subject from the moment she walked onto campus was chemistry.

“Sometimes, individual performances can take away from team success, but she harped on our chemistry to make sure our culture was where it needs to be. That’s something she continues to do and something she continues to preach to us,” Bonner said.

To be honest, that was something Bonner saw coming when Jones followed him to Fullerton, another indication why no matter how smart you may be as a talent evaluator, sometimes the crystal ball surprises you.

Orange County Register

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Cristina Jones surprises the coach she followed to Cal State Fullerton

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