Image quote courtesy of giveandgobasketball.com
UNL's Release
Lincoln – University of Nebraska Men’s Basketball Coach Tim Miles announced Wednesday that point guard Tarin Smith (Ocean Township, N.J.) signed a National Letter-of-Intent with the Nebraska basketball program.
Smith is a 6-foot-2, 175-pounder who played for Hall of Fame Coach Bob Hurley at St. Anthony, helping the Friars to consecutive state runner-up finishes. In two seasons as a starter, Smith guided the Friars to a 53-7 record and a pair of sectional titles.
"Tarin is a great addition to our program,” Nebraska Coach Tim Miles said. “He is the complete package at the point guard. He has excellent feel for the game. He is a leader. He has a terrific skill set, and is long and athletic on the defensive end. I love his personality, and he is really an endearing, bright young man. The Huskers landed a treasure in Tarin Smith!"
As a senior, he was a third-team all-state selection by the Newark Star-Ledger, averaging 15 points, four rebounds and four assists per game, as St. Anthony went 25-5 on the season. Smith reached double figures in all but two games as a senior, including a pair of 23-point outings. One of his best performances was a 12-point, eight-assist, six-rebound effort in a win over eventual state champion Roselle Catholic.
Smith averaged more than seven points per game as a junior, sharing time at guard with a pair of current Division I performers Hallice Cooke (Oregon State) and Josh Brown (Temple), as St. Anthony went 28-2 and finished second in the state in its class. Smith was the only sophomore on the varsity team in 2011-12, when the Friars went 32-0 and won the Tournament of Champions title as the best team in the state.
Smith, who selected Nebraska over Ole Miss, Providence and Duquesne, is also a standout in the classroom with a 4.0 GPA. He is in the running for valedictorian of his high school class. Smith also played with the Sports U AAU team and was one of five players to sign with power-conference teams this season.
Smith is another in a long line of guards for Coach Hurley at St. Anthony, as Hurley has won over 1,100 games and 25 state titles since taking over the program in 1972. During his tenure, he has coached over 150 players who have signed with Division I programs.
Smith joins a Nebraska program that went 19-13 under Miles and reached the second round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament. The Huskers return all five starters, including All-Big Ten performers Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields, and a roster that returns 82 percent of its scoring and 86 percent of its rebounding from a year ago.
Smith is the second member of Nebraska’s recruiting class, joining 6-foot-10 center Jacob Hammond (Comanche, Okla.), who signed with Nebraska in the fall. Hammond averaged 26.2 points, 14.8 rebounds and 5.7 blocks per game this season while earning second-team all-state honors (all-classes) from the Daily Oklahoman. A finalist for Mr. Basketball in the state of Oklahoma, Hammond was also named District 5 Player of the Year by the Oklahoma Basketball Coaches Association in 2014.
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