Cal removes interim tag from Wyking Jones

California promoted longtime college assistant Wyking Jones to head men's basketball coach Friday, officially filling a void left by Cuonzo Martin's departure.

Sources told ESPN's Jeff Goodman that Jones agreed to a five-year contract.

"We conducted a thorough search, looking near and far and talking to people all around the country," athletic director Mike Williams said in a statement. "We consulted with several Cal basketball alumni, as well as multiple NBA and college coaches -- some of the most experienced basketball minds in the game. Ultimately, we came back to where we started and found what we wanted right here in Berkeley."

Jones inherits a thin roster that became more depleted when star Ivan Rabb declared for the NBA draft earlier this week. Rabb led Cal with10.5 rebounds per game as a sophomore and was the second-leading scorer at 14.0 points per game. Leading scorer Jabari Bird was a senior. Freshman point guard Charlie Moore is the only returning player who averaged more than 5.0 points per game this season.

The Bears will have Kentucky transfer Marcus Lee available to play next season.

"I was recruited by Coach Wyking when I was first looking at schools," Lee said Friday. "We were two California guys in Kentucky who started out as rivals but remained close. I saw him being able to do great things, and to start his head-coaching career with him as my head coach is the best thing I could picture happening."

Jones joined the Golden Bears staff in April 2015. He previously served as an assistant coach at Louisville, New Mexico, Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount.

"Wyking is a hard worker and recruiter, and he is more than ready to be a head coach," Louisville's Rick Pitino said about his former assistant.

Cal turned to Jones as the interim coach following Martin's resignation on March 15. Martin accepted the head-coaching position at Missourithe same day.

"Coach Martin left an unbelievable foundation for the program and we will work hard to continue to elevate Cal basketball," Jones said Friday in a statement.

Jones played at Loyola Marymount from 1991 to 1995 before an overseas professional career.

Cal went 21-13 this season and tied for fifth place in the Pac-12 before losing in the opening round of the NIT to Cal State Bakersfield.

ESPN's Andy Katz and The Associated Press contributed to this report.