STOCKTON, Calif. – Head Coach Leonard Perry completed his staff for the 2023-24 season with the addition of two assistant coaches, Beruk Asfaw, most recently on the staff at USC, and Jonathan Jones, who was an outstanding player, professional athlete and college coach at American and Princeton.
 
Asfaw joined the Pacific men's basketball coaching staff in June 2023. Hired as the video and creative content coordinator, he was promoted to Assistant Coach in August 2023.
 
"Beruk is an outstanding addition for our staff, coming from USC," said Perry. "He's experienced in all facets of running a program and worked under outstanding coaches. He's been able to bring that experience to our staff, our players and our athletics community. He has been an outstanding addition. and the Tiger community is fortunate to have a gentleman of his ilk join our staff."
 
Asfaw was a graduate assistant with the USC program for two seasons from 2021-23. In the 2021-22 campaign, the Trojans soared to #5 in the nation with a 13-0 start. USC finished with a 26-8 record, including a 14-6 Pac-12 mark, and earned an at-large berth in the NCAA tournament.
 
In 2022-23, the Trojans hit the 20-win mark again with a 22-11 record, including another 14-6 Pac-12 record and earning another NCAA tournament berth.
 
Asfaw served as a consultant for the Ethiopian Basketball Federation from 2020-21. He was an assistant boys basketball coach in Cincinnati at Hughes STEM High.
 
Asfaw earned a bachelor's degree in biology from University of Washington and earned his master's degree in international policy and management from USC in 2023.

Jones coached the 2022-23 season at American, helping to guide the Eagles to a 17-15 mark in the Patriot League. American had marquee non-conference wins on the road at Georgetown and George Washington. Plus, the Eagles picked up a Patriot League win over defending champion Colgate, ending the Red Raiders' 25-game league win streak. The team won two Patriot Tournament games reaching the semi-finals.
 
"He has a great rapport with student-athletes," Perry said of his newest assistant coach. "He's worked at two private schools so he's a great person to add to our staff. He is experienced at a multitude of different things in terms of running a program. He can help us with video, scouting, basketball, and will be a tremendous addition to us on the floor.  We think he'll be a great Tiger."
 
Before arriving in Washington, DC, Jones spent the previous seasons as an assistant coach at Princeton. He helped guide the Tigers to a 23-7 season, with a 12-2 mark in Ivy League action on their way to securing the Ivy League Championship during the 2021-22 season and earning a berth in the NIT. He was instrumental in helping to guide the program to four team records during that season and helping to coach 2022 Ivy League Player of the Year Tosan Evbuomwam. Over his four years on the staff, Princeton had three first-team All-Ivy selections, two second-team choices, an All-Ivy Academic Team selection and an NABC Second-Team All-District honoree.

Jonathan began his coaching career in 2015 at Elizabeth High School as a junior varsity coach then, returning to his alma mater as an associate head coach at Kean University from 2016-2018.

Jones, played professionally for Norway's Tromsø Storm, averaging 23 points and 15.2 rebounds per game while being named Eurobasket All-Norwegian BLNO Forward of the Year, Import Player of the Year and first-team All-League. He still holds the record for most rebounds in a game in Norway's BLNO League with 32 rebounds. The following season, he played for AS Soleuvre in Luxembourg, averaging 20.3 points and 13.3 rebounds. He then went on to play for Finland's UU-Korihait in 2013-14, averaging 15.4 points and 8.4 rebounds, and played for Anzorena in Argentina for 2014-15, averaging 17.4 points and 10.6 rebounds.

As a senior at Kean, Jones was a first-team Division III All-American unanimous honoree, runner-up for the Division III National Player of the Year, NJAC Male Athlete of the Year, a D3hoops.com First-Team All-America, a D3 News First Team All-America, D3hoops.com First Team All-Region selection, NABC Atlantic Region Player of the Year, first-team NABC Atlantic Region, first-team All-NJAC, ECAC Metro Region Player of the Year, and first-team All-ECAC Metro Region.

He achieved 24 double-doubles leading Division III, while also finishing second in Division lll with 13.7 rebounds per game and eighth with 23.9 points per game while helping Kean to an 18-8 record and a NJAC South Division title.

Jones earned a bachelor's degree in recreational management from Kean in 2012. Jones' mother, Desiree, is a National Board-Certified teacher in Newark, N.J. and his father, Nathan, has worked for NJ Transit for more than 30 years. He has three older siblings: Nathaniel, Jason and Nicholas.

Asfaw and Jones join assistant coaches Josh Newman, Justin Brown and Jason Levy, who have been at the university for the past two years, joining the Tigers after Perry was named head coach prior to the 2021-22 season.