Belmont head coach Casey Alexander didn’t hold back when talking about freshman guard Jack Smiley - and after Saturday’s performance, it’s easy to see why.
In a game that nearly slipped through the Bruins’ fingers, Smiley delivered when it mattered most. Belmont overcame a 13-point halftime deficit to edge Illinois Chicago 87-84 at the Curb Center, and it was the freshman who helped steady the ship in crunch time, scoring all 11 of his points in the second half.
“He’s had some really big moments throughout a lot of our games,” Alexander said. “He’s a good freshman trying to figure out a new role with a new team with limited minutes.
He’s going to have to pick his spots to be impactful - but it seems like he always is, especially when we need him. For him to play with the confidence he plays with in spite of what I just said says a lot about him.
It tells you how good he is.”
This wasn’t supposed to be a game that required late-game heroics. Belmont came in as one of the Missouri Valley Conference’s top contenders.
UIC, on the other hand, is widely expected to finish in the lower half of the league. But the Flames caught fire early, especially from deep - hitting 9 of 16 from beyond the arc in the first half - and took a surprising 13-point lead into the break.
Then came the turnaround. Belmont’s offense woke up, pouring in 57 second-half points, while UIC cooled off just enough to let the Bruins back into it. And when the game tightened, Smiley stepped into the spotlight.
His first big moment came with 8:45 left. With the ball in his hands just inside the Belmont logo, he let it fly - and buried a three that tied the game.
“At halftime, the coach told me to play with confidence, be aggressive,” Smiley said. “I thought I was open, so I shot it.”
Later, with 1:40 to play and the shot clock winding down, Smiley drove hard into the lane, stumbled, and somehow banked in a layup through contact. He knocked down the free throw to give Belmont its biggest lead of the game, 79-73.
“The shot clock was running low and I actually heard Coach Karron Johnson say, ‘make a play,’ and I’m just thankful it went in,” Smiley said.
UIC didn’t fold. Josiah Hammonds, who had a career night, kept the Flames in it with a deep three that cut Belmont’s lead to 85-84 with just eight seconds left. But Tyler Lundblade calmly sank two free throws to push it back to three, and Hammonds’ final attempt to tie it rimmed out.
Hammonds was sensational. A player who came in averaging just 6.3 points per game, he erupted for 31 on Saturday - going 8-of-16 from three and a perfect 5-of-5 from the line.
“He’s been a real heavy-volume three-point shooter his whole career,” Alexander said. “He’s just not playing as much with this team as he has previously.
He had a great night. We made some mistakes early and he made tough ones, then we fouled him.
We just never took him out of it.”
While Smiley made the highlight plays, he wasn’t the Bruins’ top scorer. Lundblade and Nic McClain led the way with 17 points each, Sam Orme added 16, and Drew Scharnowski chipped in 12. But Smiley’s impact is growing - he’s now scored 58 points over his last six games and is becoming a key piece of Belmont’s rotation.
Next up, the Bruins hit the road for their second Valley matchup, facing Evansville on Tuesday night. Then it’s a trip to the West Coast to take on Cal Irvine on Friday. After that, it’s all conference play the rest of the way - and if Smiley keeps delivering like this, Belmont’s ceiling might be even higher than expected.