Annette Smith-Knight

{{Short description|American women's basketball player and coach}}

{{redirect|Annette Smith|the American medical illustrator|Annette Smith Burgess}}

{{Infobox basketball biography

|name = Annette Smith-Knight

|alt = Annette Smith holding the National Championship trophy with Head Coach Jody Conradt

|caption = Annette Smith holding the National Championship trophy with Head Coach Jody Conradt

|image = Annette_Smith-Knight_(cropped).jpg

|highlights =

Kodak All-American (1984)

}}

Annette Smith-Knight (born 1962 or 1963) has worked in the community services department for the University of Texas at Austin since the mid-2000s. Smith began her time with Texas when she played for the Texas Longhorns women's basketball team during the 1980s. While with Texas, Smith appeared at the final of the 1982 AIAW National Division I Basketball Championship and won gold at the 1983 World University Games with the American basketball team. After not playing for over a year due to injury, Smith resumed playing in 1985 and won the 1986 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament with the Longhorns. Following her 131 career games, Smith's school career records of 1052 field goals and 2523 points with Texas have remained the highest for over 30 years.

From the late 1980s to early 2000s, Smith Greene held various assistant coaching positions with Texas, Southwest Texas State University and the University of California, Irvine. Smith-Knight later worked in marketing for Texas during the early 2000s before her move to community services. Outside of basketball, Smith-Knight was previously hired by the Texas Secretary of State during the mid-1980s as a paralegal. Smith-Knight was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.

Early life and education

In the early 1960s, Annette Smith was born in Bay City, Texas.{{cite web |title=Twelfth World University Games -- 1983 |url=https://www.usab.com/history/world-university-games-womens/twelfth-world-university-games-1983-1.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181111043621/https://www.usab.com/history/world-university-games-womens/twelfth-world-university-games-1983-1.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 11, 2018 |website=USA Basketball |access-date=July 23, 2021 |date=June 10, 2010}} Growing up, Smith and her siblings took part in basketball to avoid the assigned tasks given to them while their mother was not at home.{{cite news |last1=Norwood |first1=Robin |title=Mother Doesn't Always Know Best |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-06-21-sp-1132-story.html |access-date=July 23, 2021 |work=The Los Angeles Times |date=June 21, 1991}} In 1978, Smith competed in basketball and athletics with Bay City.{{cite news |title=Victoria, Raiders Face Tough Foes |work=The Victoria Advocate |date=January 19, 1978 |page=1B}}{{cite news |last1=Boriskie |first1=Ted |title=Victoria Squeezes Into Crescent Title |work=The Victoria Advocate |date=April 2, 1978 |page=1B}} After receiving a spot in the high jump for the 1979 3A championship, Smith did not compete in the event.{{cite news |title=State 3A Qualifiers |work=The Monitor |date=May 3, 1979 |location=McAllen, Texas |page=6C}}{{cite news |title=Girls' State Meet |work=The Victoria Advocate |date=May 5, 1979 |page=2B}} During 1981, she played in the 4A final as a University Interscholastic League basketball player.{{cite news |last1=Herman |first1=Ken |title=Nazareth Nets 5th State Crown |work=The Victoria Advocate |agency=Associated Press |date=March 8, 1981 |page=3B}}{{cite web |title=1980-1981 4A Girls Basketball State Results |url=https://www.uiltexas.org/basketball/state-bracket/1980-1981-4a-girls-basketball-state-results |website=University Interscholastic League |access-date=March 15, 2024}} She was named All-Tournament during that year's event.{{cite web |title=1980-1981 4A Girls Basketball All-Tournament Team |url=https://www.uiltexas.org/basketball/all-tournament-team/1980-1981-4a-girls-basketball-state-results |website=University Interscholastic League |access-date=March 15, 2024}}

For the University of Texas at Austin, Smith joined the Texas Longhorns women's basketball team in 1981.{{cite web |title=Annette Smith - Women's Basketball |url=https://texassports.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/annette-smith/4054 |website=University of Texas Athletics |at=Stats |access-date=July 23, 2021}} At the 1982 AIAW National Division I Basketball Championship, Smith and the Longhorns were defeated by Rutgers in the final.{{cite news |title=AIAW crown to Rutgers |work=The Des Moines Register |date=March 29, 1982 |page=3B}}

While at Texas, Smith won gold with the American women's basketball team during the 1983 World University Games. In March 1984, Smith tore her tibia and anterior cruciate ligament and had surgery to fix the injuries in her left knee.{{cite news |title=Smith to miss '84-85 season |work=Austin American-Statesman |agency=Staff and Wire Reports |date=March 6, 1984 |page=E1}} Due to her knee, Smith did not attempt to secure a spot on the women's basketball team for the 1984 Summer Olympics.{{cite news |last1=Reilley |first1=Mike |title=Olympic tryout |work=The Los Angeles Times |date=March 5, 1992 |page=C8}}

Following surgery, Smith underwent over a year of physical therapy and did not play on the team until November 1985.{{cite news |last1=Rosner |first1=Mark |title=Smith's return provides boost for Lady Horns |work=Austin American-Statesman |date=November 25, 1985 |page=F8}} At the 1986 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament, Smith and Texas won the championship final.{{cite news |last1=Maloney |first1=Mark |title=USC comes up short in quest for third title |work=Times-Advocate |agency=Knight-Ridder News Service |date=March 31, 1986 |page=D1}}{{cite news |title=This day in Longhorn history:1986 - Texas women win national hoops title |url=https://www.statesman.com/photogallery/TX/20200330/SPORTS/330009998/PH/1 |access-date=July 26, 2021 |work=Austin American-Statesman |date=March 30, 2020}} That year, Smith completed her communications studies at Texas.{{cite web |title=Celebrating perfection: 1986 Texas Women's Basketball |url=https://texassports.com/news/2010/12/1/120110aaa_277 |website=University of Texas Athletics |access-date=July 26, 2021 |date=December 1, 2010}} Following her departure from Texas, Smith decided to sit out the 1988 Summer Olympics due to her earlier knee surgery.

During her 131 career games with the Longhorns, Smith had 1052 field goals and 966 rebounds while accumulating 2523 points. From 1982 to 1984, Smith had the most points and field goals for the Longhorns.{{cite web |title=Texas Women's Basketball Individual Single-Season Records |url=https://texassports.com/documents/2016/6/21//Individual_Single_Season.pdf?id=5182 |website=University of Texas Athletics |access-date=July 23, 2021 |page=1 |date=June 21, 2016}} Leading up to the 2020–21 season, Smith held the women's basketball career records in points and field goals at UT Austin for over 30 years. She also had the most season rebounds in 1982 and 1983 for the university.{{cite web |title=2020-21 Texas Women's Basketball Record Book |url=https://texassports.com/documents/2020/7/20/wbb_record_book_2020_21.pdf |website=University of Texas Athletics |access-date=July 23, 2021 |pages=46, 62 |date=July 20, 2020}}

Career

At the beginning of her career, Smith worked in loans after university.{{cite news |last1=Cantu |first1=Rick |title=No shoehorn needed |work=Austin American-Statesman |date=July 12, 1993 |page=C7}} In 1989, Annette Smith Greene was working for Texas in their loans department when she also started volunteering with the Longhorns in coaching.{{cite news |title=Notes |work=Austin American-Statesman |date=November 9, 1989 |page=C14}} The following year, Smith Greene became an assistant coach for the Longhorns in May 1990 on a part time basis.{{cite news |last1=Wangrin |first1=Mark |title=White to be named UT assistant coach |work=Austin American-Statesman |date=May 9, 1990 |page=C7}} She was later chosen to work as an assistant coach for Southwest Texas State University in July 1990 for their women's basketball team.{{cite news |title=SWT hires ex-UT star Smith Green |work=Austin American-Statesman |date=July 8, 1990 |page=C3}} After starting her role that year, Smith Greene remained at Southwest Texas before she was hired as an assistant coach for the women's basketball team at University of California, Irvine in June 1991.{{cite news |last1=Norwood |first1=Robyn |title=UCI's Matsuhara Selects Assistant Basketball Coaches |work=The Los Angeles Times |date=June 11, 1991 |page=C7}}

After remaining with Irvine for a couple of years, Annette Smith returned to Texas to continue her assistant coaching tenure in 1993.{{cite news |last1=Cantu |first1=Rick |title=Smith returns to Lady Horns as assistant |work=Austin American-Statesman |date=July 3, 1993 |page=E1}} While at Texas, Annette Smith-Knight was named assistant athletic director for basketball operations in 1998.{{cite news |title=UT women create new job, hire 2 assistants |work=Austin American-Statesman |publisher=American-Statesman Staff |date=August 7, 1998 |page=C2}} Smith-Knight remained in basketball operations until moving to a marketing assistant role for Texas in 2003.University of Texas Athletics 2020, p. 135{{cite news |title=Colleges |work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram |date=June 27, 2003 |page=11D}} By the mid-2000s, Smith-Knight entered the community services department for Texas as their coordinator.{{cite news |last1=Mayer |first1=Mercedes |title='Horns of plenty |work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram |date=Feb 16, 2004 |page=6D}}{{cite web |title=Smith-Knight to be inducted into Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame |url=https://texassports.com/story.aspx?filename=101006aaa_644&file_date=10/10/2006 |website=University of Texas Athletics |date=October 10, 2006 |access-date=July 25, 2021}} While working in community services, Smith-Knight continued to hold her coordinator position before being named the department's director in the early 2010s.{{cite news |title=1986 UT women: Where are they now? |url=https://www.statesman.com/article/20110130/NEWS/301309796 |access-date=July 25, 2021 |work=Austin American-Statesman |date=January 30, 2011}}{{cite news |last1=Fleser |first1=Dan |title=Annette Smith-Knight made herself heard at Texas, selected for Women's Hall of Fame |url=https://archive.knoxnews.com/sports/annette-smith-knight-made-herself-heard-at-texas-selected-for-womens-hall-of-fame-ep-358174403-355782021.html/ |access-date=July 25, 2021 |work=Knoxville News Sentinel |date=June 4, 2013}} Apart from her time at Texas, Smith-Knight was hired by the Texas Secretary of State during the mid-1980s and was a paralegal.{{cite news |last1=Forman |first1=Mike |title=Coming back to Texas easy decision for Smith |work=Victoria Advocate |date=July 21, 1993 |page=2B}}{{cite news |last1=Forman |first1=Mike |title=Bay City's Smith-Knight to enter UT Women's Hall of Honor |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82241801/victoria-advocate/ |access-date=July 26, 2021 |work=Victoria Advocate |date=November 7, 2002 |page=2B}}

Honors and personal life

Smith was named the Southwest Conference player of the year for women's basketball in 1983 and 1984.{{cite web |title=Women's Basketball Conference Awards |url=https://texassports.com/sports/2014/4/8/WBB_0408144256 |website=University of Texas Athletics |access-date=July 26, 2021 |date=April 8, 2014}} Smith was also a finalist for the 1984 Wade Trophy.{{cite news |title=Smith in line for Wade Trophy |work=Austin American-Statesman |agency=Wire Reports |date=March 8, 1984 |page=H2}} In 2002, Smith-Knight was named to a Hall of Honor by the University of Texas at Austin.{{cite web |title=Annette Smith-Knight (2002) - Hall of Honor |url=https://texassports.com/honors/hall-of-honor/annette-smith-knight/65 |website=University of Texas Athletics |access-date=July 21, 2021}}

Following her 2006 membership to the Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame, Smith-Knight became part of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.{{cite web |title=Annette Smith-Knight |url=https://www.wbhof.com/famers/annette-smith-knight/ |website=Women's Basketball Hall of Fame |access-date=July 21, 2021}} Smith-Knight also joined the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame in 2017.{{cite news |last1=Elerson |first1=Joe |title=Brownsboro's Griffin inducted into his second Hall of Fame |url=https://www.athensreview.com/sports/brownsboros-griffin-inducted-into-his-second-hall-of-fame/article_5aad3b68-4166-11e7-9733-c77c1f5d5579.html |access-date=July 21, 2021 |work=Athens Daily Review |date=May 25, 2017}} During 2021, the UIL selected her as one of "the top 100 players ... in UIL history."{{cite news |last1=Waddell |first1=Reece |title=Former Argyle star Rhyle McKinney named one of top 100 players of all time by UIL |url=https://dentonrc.com/sports/high_schools/former-argyle-star-rhyle-mckinney-named-one-of-top-100-players-of-all-time-by/article_95f8c5e6-5395-5f78-938a-ea2b1e5d818f.html |access-date=March 15, 2024 |work=Denton Record-Chronicle |date=March 2, 2021}}{{cite web |title=UIL 100 Anniversary - Girls Basketball |url=https://www.uiltexas.org/100/girls-basketball |website=University Interscholastic League |at=Players |access-date=March 15, 2024}} Smith-Knight is married and has two children.

References

Category:1960s births

Category:Texas Longhorns women's basketball players

Category:Texas Longhorns women's basketball coaches

Category:Texas State Bobcats women's basketball coaches

Category:UC Irvine Anteaters women's basketball coaches

Category:Living people