Arkansas assistant basketball coach Keith Smart is known in Hogs country for that gig, one he’s held since 2021. In the NBA, Smart is best known as the former head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings.
But, let’s be honest. Smart’s legacy is tied to his college playing days. Somehow, we don’t think he minds.
On this day, March 30, in 1987, Smart hit a baseline jumper in the national championship game with just four seconds left to lift Indiana to the title over Syracuse. Smart would intercept the Orange’s inbounds pass on their ensuing possession to clinch things.
“When something like that happens,” Smart told WholeHogSports in 2021, “I’ve always said that moment chases you.”
The Hoosiers’ win remains the most recent of Indiana’s five national titles.
Smart would play professionally in the NBA, Venezuela, in the World Basketball and the CBA, among others, before becoming a coach in 1997. It was in the Contentintal Basketball Association where his path would cross with Eric Musselman. The two would coach together at Golden State in 2003 and 2004 before Musselman brought him onboard with the Razorbacks.
“Keith Smart is the hero!” 🏆
36 years ago, Smart drilled the game-winning shot to lift @IndianaMBB to a #NationalChampionship! #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/IZbCnIItMY
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 30, 2023
