Texas standout inks with Hardrockers

 

By Brad Blume

Sports Information Director

RAPID CITY --- The South Dakota School of Mines men’s basketball program has already begun recruiting for the 2008-09 season, signing a very skilled and talented player from the state of Texas.

Hardrocker head coach Jason Henry along with the rest of the SDM team is pleased to announce the signing of Tommy Smith, a 6-foot-1-inch forward from Grapevine, Texas.

“He’s very athletic,” Henry said of Smith. “He plays hard and is a very good scorer. Tommy actually has a chance to lead the state of Texas in scoring this year.”

Smith is currently a senior at Fort Worth Christian High School in Fort Worth, Texas, and has been apart of his high school varsity hoops team since he was a freshman. He started as a sophomore and was a captain during his junior year.

“Smith comes to us with good strength and size for a senior in high school. He might only be 6-1, but he’s 190 pounds and works hard in the weight room,” Henry said. “He has an athletic body and could really play anywhere from the point guard to the four-man on our team.”

Smith tallied 639 total points as a junior, averaging 22.8 a game. In his three years playing varsity basketball he has also breached the 1,000-point mark playing for Fort Worth Christian. Smith has also grabbed 191 rebounds and recorded 71 assists as a junior. He was named a 5A First Team All District selection, 5A Second Team All State and an NCSAA All-American finalist.

As a sophomore Smith racked up 356 points on the season and snagged 190 rebounds. As a sophomore he earned First Team All District honors and the District Newcomer of the Year award. That year Smith’s team was the District 1 champions and advanced to the 5A state tournament semifinals.

“Tommy is exactly the type of kid our program is looking for,” Henry said. “No. 1 he is good academically. No. 2, he comes from a good family and has good people around him and No. 3 he also understands the game of basketball and plays hard.”

Academically, Smith is a 4.0 student and a member of the National Honors Society, has earned a USAA National Mathematics award, FWC class awards for biology, history, math and Spanish. He plans to major in electrical engineering or mining engineering while attending South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.