The New Mexico women's basketball team continued to add to the roster, adding more depth at the guard position.
The newest addition, Jasmine Smith of Houston, Texas, was made official on Thursday after her signed National Letter of Intent was received by the University of New Mexico.
Smith is the fifth guard to be signed by head coach Mike Bradbury since November. She joined an incoming class that includes Jaedyn DeLaCerda, Madison Washington, Antonia Anderson and N’Dea Flye – all five new signees are comprised of entirely guards.
In her senior year of high school, Smith helped lead her team to an impressive 33-5 record, posting an impressive stat line of 17.5 points, 4.1 assists and 3.3 steals per game.
Smith was a Class 6-A All-State selection and was also named to the All-Houston Metro Area first team in her senior season. Ken Sickenger of the Albuquerque Journal reported that Smith's accomplishments drew interest from nationally recognized programs such as Georgia, Tulane and Texas Christian University.
In Smith’s time at DeKaney High School, she was a two-time All-District First Team honoree and earned three tournament MVP honors, was named the Vype Preseason Player of the Year and awarded the 2017 District MVP.
Head coach Mike Bradbury said he realized the talent Smith possessed and made it a high priority to get the star guard signed.
“Jazz is an All-State player that brings a competitive edge and hunger that will continue to fuel our program,” Bradbury said in a press release. “She is a dynamic scoring guard that can really get hot, as demonstrated by this season’s 42-point outing where she made seven threes.”
The head coach, who will be entering his second season at the helm for the Lobos, seems forming a team that will have a much different on-court look than the one last season.
The Lobos still have two scholarships up for grabs for next season, but Bradbury doesn't plan on signing a center anytime soon, according to Sickenger.
In a recent article by Sickenger, Bradbury said he was not pushing to sign a center because the team typically plays just one player in the post. He said the Lobos may play without a "big" at times depending on matchups.
The impact of missing size down low could reduce the amount of rebounding, especially on the offensive end. But Bradbury appears to be trying to mitigate that impact by targeting guards who are adept and collecting boards.
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Smith amassed over 400 rebounds in her three-year varsity career in high school, according to a release.
The Lobos finished last season 15-15 and 10-8 in the Mountain West, but failed to make it out of the MW quarterfinals in the conference tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Matthew Narvaiz is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers women's basketball and baseball. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @matt_narvaiz
