Liberty Men’s Basketball Adds Smith to 2024-25 Roster
5/15/2024 1:31:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty men's basketball has added transfer Josh Smith to the roster for the 2024-25 academic year.
Smith is a 6-9 forward from Monrovia, Ind., who will be transferring from Stetson with one year of eligibility remaining.
"I'm super excited about Josh Smith. Of all the new additions to our program, we have the most familiarity with Josh," stated Liberty Men's Basketball Head Coach Ritchie McKay. "Having competed against him while he was at Stetson, his versatility, size, skill and toughness always presented a problem for us and many others. He's another high character, all in for the team individual who will help advance our program."
Smith appeared in 14 games with 11 starts this past season for the Hatters, who advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. He averaged 8.4 points and 5.7 rebounds in 22.6 minutes per game and shot 55.7 percent from the field. Smith was named the ASUN Player of the Week on Feb. 12 after averaging a double-double of 21.5 points and 11.0 rebounds per game in victories over Eastern Kentucky and Bellarmine. He tallied 24 points and 11 boards against EKU and had 19 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and a steal against Bellarmine.
During the 2022-23 season, Smith appeared in all 31 games with 27 starts and averaged 9.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 21.2 minutes per contest. He shot 57.5 percent from the floor and 78.9 percent from the foul line. Smith averaged 7.1 ppg and 5.5 rpg in 22 games (13 starts) for the Hatters during the 2021-22 season.
As a freshman, he averaged 6.0 ppg and 4.7 rpg in 27 appearances (nine starts) and was tabbed to the ASUN All-Freshman team. For his four-year career with the Hatters, Smith played in 94 games with 60 starts. He averaged 7.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 20.3 minutes per game while shooting 51.8 percent from the field, 31.5 percent from long distance and 69.4 percent from the foul line.
Smith enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Monrovia High School in Monrovia, Ind. He averaged 22 points, 12 rebounds, 2.7 blocks and 2.0 assists per game as a senior, shooting 51 percent from the field, 32 percent from three-point range and 78 percent from the free throw line. He was ranked as the No. 2 power forward in Indiana by PrepHoops.com and earned three major awards: Indiana Crossroads Conference Player of the Year, third team All-State by the Indianapolis Star and Large School All-State by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association. Smith averaged 17.0 ppg and 8.5 rpg as a junior and scored over 1,000 points in his high school career.
Smith is a 6-9 forward from Monrovia, Ind., who will be transferring from Stetson with one year of eligibility remaining.
"I'm super excited about Josh Smith. Of all the new additions to our program, we have the most familiarity with Josh," stated Liberty Men's Basketball Head Coach Ritchie McKay. "Having competed against him while he was at Stetson, his versatility, size, skill and toughness always presented a problem for us and many others. He's another high character, all in for the team individual who will help advance our program."
Smith appeared in 14 games with 11 starts this past season for the Hatters, who advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. He averaged 8.4 points and 5.7 rebounds in 22.6 minutes per game and shot 55.7 percent from the field. Smith was named the ASUN Player of the Week on Feb. 12 after averaging a double-double of 21.5 points and 11.0 rebounds per game in victories over Eastern Kentucky and Bellarmine. He tallied 24 points and 11 boards against EKU and had 19 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and a steal against Bellarmine.
During the 2022-23 season, Smith appeared in all 31 games with 27 starts and averaged 9.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 21.2 minutes per contest. He shot 57.5 percent from the floor and 78.9 percent from the foul line. Smith averaged 7.1 ppg and 5.5 rpg in 22 games (13 starts) for the Hatters during the 2021-22 season.
As a freshman, he averaged 6.0 ppg and 4.7 rpg in 27 appearances (nine starts) and was tabbed to the ASUN All-Freshman team. For his four-year career with the Hatters, Smith played in 94 games with 60 starts. He averaged 7.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 20.3 minutes per game while shooting 51.8 percent from the field, 31.5 percent from long distance and 69.4 percent from the foul line.
Smith enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Monrovia High School in Monrovia, Ind. He averaged 22 points, 12 rebounds, 2.7 blocks and 2.0 assists per game as a senior, shooting 51 percent from the field, 32 percent from three-point range and 78 percent from the free throw line. He was ranked as the No. 2 power forward in Indiana by PrepHoops.com and earned three major awards: Indiana Crossroads Conference Player of the Year, third team All-State by the Indianapolis Star and Large School All-State by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association. Smith averaged 17.0 ppg and 8.5 rpg as a junior and scored over 1,000 points in his high school career.
Welcome to the Family, Josh!??
— Liberty Men's Basketball (@LibertyMBB) May 15, 2024
??: https://t.co/uiepYWAtjT pic.twitter.com/gsRbas2t6j
Coach McKay Talks About The Win Over Coppin State
Saturday, December 06
Brett Decker Jr. & Josh Smith Talk About The Win Over Coppin State
Saturday, December 06
My Moment: Colin Porter
Tuesday, December 02
Coach McKay Talks About The 2026-27 Signing Class
Thursday, November 20