keywordsking.com photo: Mark Fox seen here as former head coach at Georgia steps in as Cal’s head coach and likes what the Cal program is all about. Fox has been to five Tournaments in the last 14 years.

By Morris Phillips and Michael Duca

BERKELEY — Cal’s Athletic Director Jim Knowlton’s hiring of Mark Fox called the hiring “a man of unparalleled integrity with a proven record of success as a head basketball coach.”

After the firing of former head coach Wyking Jones last Sunday Knowlton wanted to hire someone as quickly as possible and put last season in the rearview mirror. The Bears didn’t win a Pac 12 game until they won their last three games of the regular season. Jones and the Bears had a 16 game losing streak during last season.

Fox come in from Georgia University with five tournaments while coaching in the last 14 seasons at the University of Nevada and Georgia compiling a 286-176. Knowlton said that the hiring pool had many candidates and said that Fox is exceptional and he was a good choice what direction Cal wants to go.

The Bears were thought to have former Cal player and NBA standout Jason Kidd ending up coming back to Cal and coach the team. Kidd is currently working on getting his degree and Kidd said that he wanted to coach in the NBA.

Fox is 50 did not coach last season after getting fired from Georgia where he did pick up two NCAA Tournaments. It was at Nevada where he coached the team to the Tournament three times and compiling a 123-43 record in five years.

Fox was an assistant coach to Jeff Van Gundy on the US World qualifying team and assisted on the Milwaukee Bucks summer league. Fox got to coach with some of the greats Geno Auriemma, Gregg Popovich and Brad Stevens during last season.

Knowlton is confident that Fox can get the program going again and Fox said that he’s confident that the Cal academic program is an amazing opportunity and said he appreciates Knowlton and Cal Chancellor Christ giving him opportunity and looks forward to getting to work.

Morris Phillips and Michael Duca cover Cal Bears basketball for http://www.sportsradioservice.com