Central Missouri men’s basketball coach Doug Karleskint recently announced the signing of Jalen Blaize to a grant-in-aid. Blaize will have two seasons of eligibility for the Mules.

A 6’3″ 190-pound guard, Blaize comes to UCM after spending the past two seasons playing for coach Steve Soza at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Spring, Wyo. As a sophomore, Blaize had 14 games of double-figure scoring, with a high of 21 points in a road win at Western Nebraska. For the season, he averaged 8.3 points per game while shooting 40 percent from the 3-point line.

Blaize helped the Mustangs to a 30-4 record, culminating in the NJCAA Division I Region IX Championship. WWCC had qualified for the national tournament before the COVID-19 pandemic ultimately canceled the rest of the postseason.

A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Blaize played at South Shore High School, a perennial power in New York’s PSAL.