Life as a Mountaineer – Madisen Smith
February 14, 2021 10:10 AM | Women's Basketball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia junior guard Madisen Smith played six years of high school basketball at Greenville Senior High in Greenville, South Carolina.
How is this possible?
Well, she began playing varsity basketball in the seventh grade - she was that good!
"I was 12 years old playing with 16-, 17-year-old girls so it was definitely an adjustment," she says. "In ninth grade I started so I tried to learn everything I could and be as coachable as I could."
In her six seasons at Greenville Senior High, Smith managed to score more than 2,000 career points and earn numerous scholarship offers. She picked West Virginia because of the opportunity to play early.
"This was the best opportunity to play as a freshman," she says. "The Big 12 Conference is one of the best conferences there is so it was a great choice for me."
Smith has been a mainstay for the Mountaineers ever since, appearing in her 80th career game yesterday. Seventy-six of those have been starts.
She's been one of the key cogs on a team that is climbing the rankings. WVU is now 19th in the polls and is second in the Big 12 Conference behind only Baylor.
Smith says she's glad the fans are now allowed back in the WVU Coliseum to support the team.
"I love the fans. They absolutely love us regardless of our seasons," she says. "The past two seasons haven't been as great, and this year has been a great year so they've been supporting us throughout all of that. I'm glad to have the fans back."
As for her small stature, standing just 5-feet-5 inches, Smith said size has never been an issue to her.
"Don't let anybody tell you that you can't do anything because of your size or whatever, don't let anybody stop you," she explains.
West Virginia looks to close out the regular season on a strong note and Smith hopes to lead the Mountaineers back into the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017.
"I just have to stay focused on my goals, which is winning. My goal is to always win," she says.
This week's Life as a Mountaineer was produced by Chris Ostien and is presented by WVU Medicine.
How is this possible?
Well, she began playing varsity basketball in the seventh grade - she was that good!
"I was 12 years old playing with 16-, 17-year-old girls so it was definitely an adjustment," she says. "In ninth grade I started so I tried to learn everything I could and be as coachable as I could."
In her six seasons at Greenville Senior High, Smith managed to score more than 2,000 career points and earn numerous scholarship offers. She picked West Virginia because of the opportunity to play early.
"This was the best opportunity to play as a freshman," she says. "The Big 12 Conference is one of the best conferences there is so it was a great choice for me."
Smith has been a mainstay for the Mountaineers ever since, appearing in her 80th career game yesterday. Seventy-six of those have been starts.
She's been one of the key cogs on a team that is climbing the rankings. WVU is now 19th in the polls and is second in the Big 12 Conference behind only Baylor.
Smith says she's glad the fans are now allowed back in the WVU Coliseum to support the team.
"I love the fans. They absolutely love us regardless of our seasons," she says. "The past two seasons haven't been as great, and this year has been a great year so they've been supporting us throughout all of that. I'm glad to have the fans back."
As for her small stature, standing just 5-feet-5 inches, Smith said size has never been an issue to her.
"Don't let anybody tell you that you can't do anything because of your size or whatever, don't let anybody stop you," she explains.
West Virginia looks to close out the regular season on a strong note and Smith hopes to lead the Mountaineers back into the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017.
"I just have to stay focused on my goals, which is winning. My goal is to always win," she says.
This week's Life as a Mountaineer was produced by Chris Ostien and is presented by WVU Medicine.
Players Mentioned
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