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Another interesting sidelight is that Hatchell was an assistant coach for the 1988 U.S. Olympic women’s basketball team which won the gold medal at the Games in Seoul, Korea. The ball slithered through the net for Smith’s only 3-pointer of the season, UNC won 60–59, and the Tar Heels (33–2) were national champions on a memorable Sunday afternoon that fans, players and coaches will never forget.
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Portland would suffer another loss to the Lakers in the playoffs, this time in a three-game sweep in the first round. Following the season he would be traded to the San Antonio Spurs for Derek Anderson and Steve Kerr. However, all pales in comparison to that April 1994 day in Richmond where Smith and her Tar Heel teammates became legendary. “You only get one shot to win a national championship, and we accomplished our primary goal,” she said. The 1998–99 season would be limited to 50 games as a result of a league wide lockout, and in 36 games Smith averaged 18.7 points a game and led the Hawks to another 5 game first round victory over Detroit. The Hawks had no answer, however, for the New York Knicks, and again the Hawks were eliminated in the semifinals.
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The Phoenix lost three starters from that team but returned leading scorer Shay Burnett, a guard who's one of three seniors for Elon. Those seniors are kept busy mentoring six freshmen and three sophomores; there are no juniors. Burnett is the team's second-leading scorer (13.4 PPG) behind 6-foot-4 sophomore center Ra'Shika White (14.3 PPG). She was actually the first full-time women’s college coach in the state of North Carolina, when Yow was hired to be the volleyball, women’s basketball and slow-pitch softball coach at State. Smith also represented the U.S. internationally, most notably winning a gold medal and MVP honors in the 1996 Jones Cup. She also played in the 1995 World University Games and was a member of the South Team in the 1993 U.S.
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However, she is better known for her lengthy and successful career at North Carolina State. Charlotte Smith (born August 23, 1973) is a forward for the Charlotte Sting. In the fall of 1996, the American Basketball League (ABL) was formed as the first independent professional basketball league for women in the U.S. "Women's basketball was not highly televised, so it was hard to see role models," Smith said in a phone interview this week after a workout at Elon, where she coaches now. "I didn't have any female role models to look up to with regard to having an opportunity to play professionally. So, as a little girl, I always thought that I would play in the NBA and never imagined there being a chance for a WNBA. She graduated from Shelby High, and grew up watching her uncle, David Thompson, become one of the best players in the country in his time at NC State.
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Smith also earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from UNC in 1999. The Trail Blazers entered the 2000–01 season with high expectations, but struggled to repeat the success of the previous season, as injuries took their toll and new additions and trades hurt team chemistry. Smith only started in 36 of 81 games, but still managed to 13.6 points a game.
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Smith would no longer be required to carry the offensive load, and averaged 14.9 points a game in 81 starts as the Trail Blazers secured the second best record in the Western Conference. Smith would increase his scoring average to 17.1 in the playoffs, as Portland would defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round before beating the Utah Jazz in the semifinals. Up next would be the league best Los Angeles Lakers, who took a 3–1 series lead over Portland before the Trail Blazers won game 5 on the road and game 6 at home as Smith scored 26 points to set up a game 7 matchup. Despite leading by double digits heading into the fourth quarter, the Lakers came back to win the game and advance to the NBA Finals where they would win the NBA Title. In 2002, Charlotte Smith joined the North Carolina Tar Heels women's basketball coaching staff as an assistant coach. Smith would help lead the Tar Heels to four straight number one seeds in the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship from 2005 to 2008.
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The only other Carolina women’s player with a retired number is Ivory Latta. Charlotte Smith, the head coach of the Elon Phoenix, achieved her 200th coaching victory on Jan. 12, 2024, with a road win against Campbell. This milestone is a testament to her exceptional coaching career at Elon, leading the team to two CAA championships and NCAA Tournament bids since taking over in 2011. Smith's coaching journey has been characterized by numerous memorable victories, showcasing her leadership and the team's achievements. That summer, Smith represented the United States at the 2000 Summer Olympics for the United States men's national basketball team, which won the gold medal.
Smith was positioned near inbounds passer Stephanie Lawrence to the left of the lane. Three Louisiana Tech players converged on Sampson, and Smith dashed to the right wing and was wide open. With one legendary shot, Charlotte Smith cemented her spot in Carolina women’s basketball history, but not without some anxious moments and confusion coming out of the huddle. After her collegiate eligibility ended in 1995, Smith joined a professional basketball club in Italy. She was named Most Valuable Player of the Italian league's All-Star game for the 1995–1996 season.
Smith said she was "out of it" mentally during the first huddle, when North Carolina drew up a lob play to center Sylvia Crawley. But when inbounds passer Stephanie Lawrence saw that Louisiana Tech had that covered, she called a timeout. She had to ask Crawley what the play was as they returned to the court.
When she visited Thompson and his family in Charlotte this summer, Smith got a tour of his trophy collection and found she and her uncle had some honors in common, including first team all-ACC and Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. "He told me the one I really ought to get is the Naismith award for national player of the year," says Smith, who is a preseason candidate for the prize. His Airness might not have spoken to the Tar Heel of the moment, but another member of the order—the charter member, in fact—did. David Thompson, Tobacco Road's premier aerialist, who felled Bill Walton and UCLA while leading North Carolina State to the 1974 NCAA crown, sent Smith flowers and candy immediately after her big shot and called a few days later. But then, he's her uncle, the youngest brother of Smith's mother, Etta.
Legacies and legends: Women's basketball preps for match-up with UNC - Elon News Network
Legacies and legends: Women's basketball preps for match-up with UNC.
Posted: Tue, 06 Nov 2018 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Smith earned Most Outstanding Player after collecting with 20 points and 23 rebounds in the championship game. The Tar Heels trailed Louisiana Tech by two points in the 1994 NCAA championship game in Richmond with 0.7 of a second left. In the huddle, legendary Hall of Fame coach Sylvia Hatchell diagrammed a play for Smith — one of the most decorated players in program history — to win it with a 3-pointer. Portland was a loaded team that had reached the Western Conference Finals in the 1999 playoffs and featured star forward Rasheed Wallace as well as the newly acquired Scottie Pippen.
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