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Smith seems to have his free-throw woes solved
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Published: February 27, 2009
Updated: 02/27/2009 12:50 am
It was never really a laughing matter.
Last season, Ish Smith couldn't have beaten Wilt Chamberlain in his prime, Shaq O'Neal or any other of the world's worst in a free-throw shooting contest.
Smith shot 29.1 percent from the free-throw line … for the season.
Not for a week, not for a month, not for a rough road stretch … for the season.
But now, Smith is able to look back and laugh.
He has solved the free-throw shooting problems and has raised his level of play in other facets as well … in the last week, in the last month, and heading into a rough road stretch.
James Johnson was the biggest star last night in Wake Forest's 85-78 victory over N.C. State at Joel Coliseum, but Smith was just as big of a feel-good story.
He scored a season-high 18 points in 25 minutes off the bench, hit two crucial 3-pointers, and -- believe it or not -- was a perfect 4 of 4 from the free-throw line.
That raised his season's totals from the line to 21 of 26, or 80.7 percent. Add up his 46.2 as a freshman and his 29.1 last season, and they still don't get to 80.7.
"What people don't know," Smith said, "I was an 85, 80 percent free-throw shooter in high school. The guys mess with me all the time, ‘Where has that gone?'
"My high-school coach is calling me all the time, like, ‘Ish, all it takes is one, two, three, and then it's a snowball effect.
"Last year was funny. I was just ready to get out of last year. I was like, ‘This is horrendous.' I've never shot anything that badly. I know my little niece could shoot probably better than that. So it was really embarrassing. But this year became a snowball effect. I made one, two, and it just continues to get better."
He has now hit nine straight free throws over the past four games and 11 of his past 12.
Nobody was happier with the performance than Coach Dino Gaudio, who has defended Smith when many around Tie Dye Nation were getting restless and frustrated.
Shooting and texting
"I think he deserves all the improvement he's made because he's a tireless worker," Gaudio said. "He worked on those free throws all summer. He would text me and Coach (Pat) Kelsey all summer -- ‘Hey, I was 175 of 200.' He shot 200 free throws a day.
"You know, some folks were bashing him. I remember I got an email saying, ‘I cannot believe Ish Smith is shooting free throws like he is, and he doesn't practice.' I said, ‘Whoa, whoa. There's nobody that works harder at that than he does.' "
Smith's teammates have also stood up for him.
"I'm so happy for my man," guard L.D. Williams said. "One of their officials came up to me and said, ‘How can you not love Ishmael Smith?' I said, ‘Man, he's like my brother.' So to see Ishmael playing the way he is, well, he deserves everything he's getting."
Smith's 18 points marked his fourth straight game scoring in double figures, after he had hit double digits just once all season. He scored 11 in a win over Florida State, 11 in a win over Georgia Tech, and scored 12 in the loss at Duke.
His 3-pointer with 6:14 remaining, with the shot clock winding down to zero, pushed a 67-61 lead to 70-61 and was as big as any shot in the game.
"I had some big shots and I had to knock them down," he said. "I've been working on them with Coach (Mike) Muse, Caoch (Jeff) Battle before practice. And when I don't have as much homework I try to go in and shoot some when I can.
"This does wonders for my confidence. Obviously I've been playing well the last three of four games, but my whole thing now is, I've got to play consistent."
That's exactly what Gaudio wants to hear.
"For a while there, we were like, ‘We've got to get Ish back to where he was,'" Gaudio said. "He's, knock on wood, back and taking those next steps. He was outstanding."
■ John Delong can be reached at jdelong@wsjournal.com.
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