Florida Gators

Dana Smith is a very intelligent player who is fundamentally sound (her father, Danny, was her high school coach)... split time during the summer between Gainesville and her home in Bartow, Fla., located two and a half hours from campus... a gutsy defender who led the team in charges taken... was second all-time in 3-point field goals at UF, trailing teammate Talatha Bingham... graduated from St. Cloud High School as Florida's all-time prep scorer (male or female), and held the record until current Lady Gator sophomore Tonya Washington surpassed the mark.

Also worth noting... records upon graduation...: In UF's all-time record book, Smith ranked No. 1 three-point FG pct. (32.6%), No. 2 three-pointers (142), No. 2 three pointers attempted (435), tied-No. 2 games played (125), No. 5 assists (368) & No. 7 steals (183)... UF was 92-36 during her four-year career, won at least 21 games each of those seasons, reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA twice, the NCAA Elite Eight once and earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament every year.

As a Senior (1997-98) Dana Smith shifted over from her starting 2-guard position to the point guard spot to open the season for Mo Hudson, who was sidelined during the preseason after tearing her ACL... has nearly a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio this season... started her 100th career game at Alabama (Feb. 14), when she also topped the 800-point mark for her career... hit for a season-high 16 points in 28 minutes of work versus Ole Miss (Feb. 8), as she connected on a season-high four 3-pointers... moved into sixth place all-time in the UF record books for assists... dished a career-high 11 assists versus Texas (Nov. 25)... second all-time at UF for 3-point field goals (behind current teammate Talatha Bingham)... tallied second career double-double with 12 points and 12 assists versus South Carolina (Jan. 17)... started 66 consecutive games until the Nov. 21 meeting against Miami, when, by mistake, Tombi Bell was checked in as a starter... Smith entered the game at the first dead ball, but the streak had ended... had six double-figure scoring games... got engaged to long-time boyfriend and former Lady Gator manager Eric Hawkes during the Christmas Break.

As a Junior (1996-97) Starter in all 33 games, averaging 36.2 minutes... sizzled during the NCAA Championships, tallying 12.5 points and 3.8 assists, while shooting 3-pointers at a 47.8-percent clip (11-of-23) during the four games... turned in a remarkable performance in the SEC Tournament semifinal upset over No. 6 Alabama, with 13 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals in 40 minutes of work... led UF in its NCAA first round win, tying a career-high with 21 points, adding four assists and four steals... hit a career-best five 3-pointers in the NCAA win over Southern Cal... established a season record for minutes played (1,193), surpassing the 1,020 minutes logged by Merlakia Jones in 1995... recorded the first double-double of her career with a 13 point-12 rebound effort versus Tennessee (Jan. 21)... hit a then-career-high 21 points in the championship game of the SWT Classic, leading UF to the title... played at least 40 minutes in 13 games during her career, including nine this year... connected on her second trey of the night at Arkansas when UF led by four in overtime which took the air out of UA's sail and essentially put the game out of reach... her father, Danny, coached her brother Darek and his Bartow HS football team to a 14-13 upset of the No. 1 team in the country in the state title game Dec. 21.

As a Sophomore (1995-96) Florida's fourth-leading scorer, recording 7.6 points per outing... logged a team-high 1008 minutes, 12 shy of the Lady Gator all-time mark... played every minute in five different games, averaging a team-best 33.6 minutes... recorded at least one three-point bucket in 24 of the 30 outings... showed great courage in the game at second-ranked Georgia (Feb. 20), when she played 30 minutes and scored 10 points with five rebounds after suffering from an abscessed tooth early that morning... one of three players to start all 30 games... scored in all but one game (Jan. 1 at Tennessee)... netted a career-high 16 points against Rutgers (Dec. 10) in the championship game of Rutgers' Brothers International Holiday Tournament and contributed 12 points in the first tourney game versus Arkansas State... 10 double-figure scoring games... honored with the team's Mary Myers Elliot Unsung Gator Award.

As a Freshman (1994 95) Saw action in 30 games with 13 starts... averaged 19.1 minutes as the sixth leading scorer on the team at 4.9 ppg... third on the team in assists with 58 (1.9 pg.)... starter in first 11 games and both NCAA Tournament games at point guard... missed three consecutive games, beginning with Kentucky as a result of injury (back strain) suffered in a car accident the morning of the Kentucky game... top three point threat for Florida with a 44.3% mark from beyond the three point arc, the second best season mark in school history... hit higher percentage from three point area than overall field goal percentage (38.9)... named to the Dial Soap Florida Challenge all tournament team... only the second UF freshman to earn an all tournament selection during her freshman season (Merlakia Jones, 1991 Lady Gator Classic)... scored 10 or more points three times... posted a season-high 16 points against Lynn... dished out a season high seven assists versus Southern Miss.

High School and AAU Graduated from St. Cloud High School as Florida's all time prep scorer (male or female) with 3,469 points and ranked eighth all time on the national high school list... first female to score over 3,000 points in Florida prep history... averaged 24.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 6.5 steals over four year varsity career... led SCHS to the Class 4A State Championship... earned MVP honors in the Class 4A State Tournament and Florida State AAU Tournament four times... received national recognition in the form of All America selection from five organizations including Street & Smith's, Dick Vitale's Top 20 Recruits in the Nation and USA Today... finished career ranked among the top 10 nationally in nine categories: points (8th), career free throw attempts (1,018, 2nd), career free throws made (751, 2nd), career assists (1,056, 4th), free-throw attempts in a season (330, 4th), free-throw attempts per game in a season (8.91, 9th), free throws made in a season (260, 3rd), free-throws made per game in a season (7.02, 6th) and assists (351, 6th)... scored 10 or more points in 138 of 140 games, 20 or more in 103 games, 30 or more in 42 games, 40 or more in nine games and 50 or more once... Miss Florida Basketball runner up to Tracy Reid... four time all state, all county and all conference selection... named to the Orlando Sentinel All Southern Team... Osceola News Gazette Player of the Year... guided SCHS to four Final Four appearances... squad also won four sectional, regional, district, conference and county championships over career for a 127 13 overall record... coached by her father, Danny Rea Smith.