Colorado University Athletics
Buffs' Smith Ready To Leave Legacy In Her Senior Season
October 02, 2016 | Women's Basketball, Neill Woelk
Payne's team opens practice Monday
BOULDER — Colorado senior Haley Smith has a simple philosophy when it comes to her final season as a Buff.
"Why not?" Smith said recently. "The way I've been looking at things, in general, in life and in basketball, has been it's my senior year — so why not? Why not dedicate myself in the classroom, on the court, everywhere. This is my last chance, my last year. Why not do it 100 percent every day, every chance I get and just go all out?"
Not that Smith hasn't been giving her best thus far. The 6-1 wing was second on the team last year in rebounding (5.7 rpg), third in scoring (10.7 ppg) and second in assists (1.5 apg).
But with last season's leading scorer and rebounder, Jamee Swan, gone to graduation, new head coach JR Payne and her staff will be counting on Smith to deliver even more. Smith believes she's ready for the challenge, and ready to help the Buffs get back on the right track after a disappointing 7-23 finish (2-16 Pac-12).
"I just think that after our season last year, we all feel we have something to prove, something to show," Smith said. "Even if this isn't the year that we're able to win a Pac-12 championship or get to the Sweet 16, I feel like my role can be leading us in the right direction and getting us in a good spot, so in a couple of years we are the Pac-12 champions and our freshman class gets to do some really cool things by the time they are seniors."
That the Buffs are in a transition/rebuilding year is no secret. But Payne, associate head coach Toriano Towns and the rest of the staff have spent virtually every waking moment since arriving in March to build team unity and reawaken the rich tradition of CU women's hoops.
They'll officially open practice Monday, with the season opener set Nov. 11 at Northern Colorado and the season home opener two days later against Air Force.
"They've been awesome," Smith said of the new staff. "They emphasize getting to know the players as people. They encourage us to come by the offices because they want to see us. It's been good to get to know them because when you are having a tough workout, you look at them and know, 'This person has my back. I'm going to work my hardest for them.'
"It's nice to have that personal connection. They're definitely tough in workouts, which we've all appreciated, but you enjoy working hard for them."
Throughout her career, Smith has been one of the more consistent players for the Buffs. The Sammamish, Wash., native started in 20 of 32 games as a true freshman, then started all 32 games as a junior and 29 of 30 last year. Her scoring average has steadily climbed from 3.5 points per game to 9.4 to 10.7 while her rebounding improved from 2.3 rpg to 5.4 to 5.7.
Now, with Swan gone, Smith knows she and her teammates will have to make up for the 13.5 points and 7.0 rebounds that went with her.
"We just relied on her to do that consistently — and sometimes, if you have that kind of person, you can rely on them a little bit too heavily," Smith said. "But not having her here will allow everyone else to elevate their game. We'll all have to step up and fill that role, and I think that can be a positive for us. We might not have a bunch of All-Americans, but we do have a team of workhorses who are going to get things done."
The Buffs do have a solid returning group of veterans. Along with Smith, the list also includes seniors Bri Watts, Lauren Huggins and Zoe Beard-Fails; as well as returning starters Kennedy Leonard, Alexis Robinson and Zoe Correal.
Along with improved statistics, Smith will also be expected to take on a larger leadership role.
"I don't know if anyone would consider me the most vocal person, but I'm probably a good leader by example," Smith said. "People see my actions and can feed off those and take energy from that. I also think I'm a person who doesn't react negatively or let certain plays take me into a spiral and head downhill. In that way, I think I'm encouraging and keeping the energy positive as opposed to letting everyone hang their heads."
The Buffs know they won't be mentioned among the conference contenders when the preseason predictions come out. But there's a quiet confidence building among the team, one that continues to grow under the encouragement of the new coaching staff.
"I think people are going to be surprised at the tenacity with which we're going to play, how hard we're going to work," Smith said. "Whether or not we shoot lights out or jump out of they gym — we don't necessarily need those things. What we are going to do is outwork people and I think our fans are going to be pleasantly surprised."
Smith and her upperclassmen teammates do have some solid memories on which to build. Two years ago, the Buffs knocked off nationally ranked and top-seeded Oregon State in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 tournament before falling to Cal in the semifinals.
It's a moment Smith and her teammates would not only like to replicate, but take one step farther and advance to the tourney finals. But most of all, it was proof that the Buffs can do great things when they play up to their abilities.
Now, she and her classmates would like to leave a foundation for future classes to build on.
"I think that's going to be the legacy our senior class leaves, being that backbone for building that foundation," Smith said. "This year we're laying that foundation. How high it goes, we'll find out. But a lot of our legacy is mentoring and providing direction for the younger players, so when they win the Pac-12 Championship in three or four years, they say, 'Haley and Lauren and Zoe and Bri, they showed us what it meant to work hard and to have love for Colorado basketball, and now we're able to accomplish this.'
"Whether or not we get the actual ring, we're going to play a big role in that."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
