By Joseph Staszewski
Jeff Walz couldn’t help but notice something different about Bria Smith at practice as he was going over a scouting report.
“We started going over some St. John’s [University] stuff to prepare and you could just see a little smile on her face,” the Louisville women’s basketball coach said.
The former Christ the King guard knew she was coming home this weekend to play in New York City for the first time in a Cardinals uniform. Louisville visited St. John’s at 1:30 p.m. Sunday at Carnesecca Arena. Smith’s parents, Andrea and Craig, got to watch her in person for the first time at the collegiate level.
“Before the game I don’t think I am going to do much looking around,” said Smith, who has started every game of her freshman season. “I may get nervous. I’m just going to go out there and try to win.”
Andrea compared this to the excitement of seeing her first game at Christ the King, then a rare freshman playing on the varsity. Her parents have watched her play on television and plan on attending more games later in the season when Louisville hosts Big East powers UConn and Notre Dame.
“She has been doing a good job so we are really proud of her,” Andrea said. “She loves the school and she loves Louisville. They have a great fan base. She is just enjoying herself so much. She is like a little celebrity there.”
Her daughter has done plenty to deserve that status. Smith, a McDonald’s All-American at CK, is averaging 11.1 points per game, good enough for third-best among active players on the No. 14-ranked Cardinals. She is averaging 4.5 rebounds in 24 minutes, shooting just less than 50 percent from the field and leads the team in steals with 41.
“She’s really had to step in and play more like a sophomore and a junior at times now,” Walz said.
Louisville is 13-2 overall and 2-0 in the Big East. The Cardinals have won six straight since a lopsided loss to instate rival Kentucky in early December and have their eye on a Final Four berth in Denver. They face a St. John’s team that is 9-6 and 1-1 in conference that has also dealt with injuries.
The 5-foot-10 Smith along with a number of the team’s younger players began to excel after junior Tia Gibbs was lost in the season opener to a shoulder injury and senior Monique Reid was done for the year just eight games in after hurting her knee.
Smith is used to the spotlight. She led Christ the King to the state Federation Class AA title as a junior and to the CHSAA state championship game as a senior and sophomore.
There’s been an adjustment period to the speed of the college game and an emphasis on limiting turnovers. She’s become more comfortable kicking to open teammates when she is able to penetrate and his working on improving her mid-range jumper. Smith has earned her minutes by being a complete player, rebounding and defending.
“Every game is a growing experience for me and our team,” Bria Smith said. “So just getting out there and playing every game I learn more.”
She is coming off one of her better performances of the season. Smith scored 14 of her 16 points in the second half in 31 minutes to help lift Louisville to a win over Marquette Jan. 3. She also had nine straight points to start the second half in a victory against Washington State Dec. 19.
“She’s got the full package,” Walz said.
On Sunday things come full circle for Smith. She returns to the city where she made her name and honed her skills and will do it in front of many of the people who watched her work to get where she is now. When she made a short stop home for the holidays, she got to see her family and they were all asking for tickets. Smith was excited to see them, but couldn’t help but think of their next meeting in Queens Sunday.
It will give her another reason to smile.
“Seeing them at my game will be way better,” Smith said. “I’m just excited to be home to play.”
