Kyle Smith is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 college basketball

College basketball

College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....

 coach and the current men's basketball head coach at Columbia University

Columbia University

Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...

. Prior to joining the Lions, Smith was associate head coach at Saint Mary's

Saint Mary's College of California

Saint Mary's College of California is a private, coeducational college located in Moraga, California, United States, a small suburban community about east of Oakland and 20 miles east of San Francisco. It has a 420-acre campus in the Moraga hills. It is affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church...

, where he was responsible for running the offense and heading up the recruiting activities. In his final season at Saint Mary's Smith helped guide the Gaels to two wins in the NCAA tournament and an appearance in the Sweet 16. Upon his hire by Columbia, St. Mary's head coach Randy Bennett

Randy Bennett

Randy Bennett is an American college basketball coach and the current head men's basketball coach at Saint Mary's College of California. Bennett has led the Gaels to a 183–103 record in his nine years as head coach...

 commented “He will be very successful, He has been a huge part of what we’ve done [at St. Mary’s]. It’s been he and I together—it’s been like having a co-coach.”

Smith was a member of New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

's Hamilton College men's basketball team that achieved a 26–1 record his junior season and achieved the national Division III #1 ranking. Additionally, University of Richmond

University of Richmond

The University of Richmond is a selective, private, nonsectarian, liberal arts university located on the border of the city of Richmond and Henrico County, Virginia. The University of Richmond is a primarily undergraduate, residential university with approximately 4,000 undergraduate and graduate...

 head men's basketball coach Chris Mooney referred to Smith as "the smartest man in college basketball. I think he has the best feel and overview of basketball programs and coaching of anyone I've ever met."

External links

• http://www.gocolumbialions.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=43664&SPID=3886&DB_OEM_ID=9600&ATCLID=204940599&Q_SEASON=2010
• http://ivybbn.com/?p=4608
• http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/blog/_/name/katz_andy/id/5410634