Sacramento State extended Jerome Jenkins’ contract on Wednesday, which will keep the fifth-year men’s basketball coach roaming the sidelines at the Hornets Nest at least through the 2006-07 season.

“It’s a partnership,” Sac State Athletics Director Terry Wanless. “We’re working together to bring a Big Sky championship to the Hornets.”

In his five years with Sac State, Jenkins has improved the team’s conference win total each year, led the team to the Big Sky tournament the last three years — including a trip the semifinals in 2003 — and its best conference record in 2005 at 8-6 since joining the Big Sky in 1996.

“When you evaluate the program, you look at certain factors,” Wanless said. “We see that progress has been made in the men’s basketball program and it’s heading in the right direction.”

The Hornets have hosted a Big Sky tournament first round game each of the last two years, only to fall at the hands of rival Weber State both times. Sac State tied for second in the Big Sky in 2003-04 and took fourth last season.

“Right now they’re the old Pistons and we’re the young Bulls,” Jenkins told The State Hornet after the latest playoff defeat at the hands of the Wildcats, 74-71 on March 5.

Jenkins’ “young Bulls” — which featured seven newcomers to the program 65533; began last year with a record of 2-8 only to close the year on riding a 7-3 record. The team lost two seniors, E.J. Harris and All-Big Sky performer Jameel Pugh, but return fellow All-Big Sky selections DaShawn Freeman and Jason Harris for their senior seasons.

“We’ve been building to this for a while,” said Wanless of the upcoming 2005-06 team’s veteran experience. “We’ll have the kind of team on the floor that knows what it takes from the beginning of the season.”

Jenkins and his staff recently finished its recruiting class for next season, signing three prized guards, two of which will suit up in green and gold in 2005-06, and making good on his reputation as a good recruiter.

Junior College transfers, 6-foot-2 Loren Leath (Los Angeles Valley Community College) and 6-foot-4 Clark Woods (Lansing Community College) will look to follow in current Hornet Jason Harris’ footsteps; Harris transferred from Chaffey Junior College prior to last year and won the Big Sky Newcomer of the Year award, leading the team in scoring with 17.5 points per game and averaging 4.6 rebounds per contest.