KU women face UMKC tonight

By Chuck Woodling Nov 14, 2007

Not often does a basketball team’s leading scorer and rebounder come off the bench.

That’s what happened Sunday, however, when Kansas University women’s basketball opened with a 76-72 victory over Hartford. Freshman Nicollette Smith didn’t start, yet led the Jayhawks with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Now the question is: Did Smith’s performance earn her a starting role tonight against UMKC?

“She’s making a case for herself,” KU coach Bonnie Henrickson said. “But whether she starts or not, she’s going to play, and I think she’s better off the bench right now.”

Tipoff will be at 7 p.m. in Allen Fieldhouse. Sunflower Broadband channel 6 will televise the game live.

Smith, a 6-foot-2 Tulsa, Okla., native, made 4-of-7 shots from 3-point range and, more important, went 7-for-7 at the free-throw line down the stretch as the Jayhawks held off the Hawks, the preseason favorite to win the America East Conference title.

“For a freshman,” Henrickson said of Smith, “she’s not a kid who gets real high or real low. She’d be a good poker player.”

When it comes to shooting, Smith isn’t like a poker player trying to draw to an inside straight. Smith’s range and accuracy have impressed her teammates.

“Nic can shoot from anywhere on the court,” sophomore Danielle McCray said. “She can hit it from four of five feet behind the (3-point) line.”

In fact, Smith’s first shot when she came off the bench against Hartford was from NBA 3-point range. She hit it, too.

After tonight, Kansas will be idle until a week from Friday when the Jayhawks will meet Drake in the first round of the two-day SMU Invitational in Dallas.