Arik Smith, Basketball

Arik Smith, Basketball

Arik Smith combined for 45 points on his way to leading the Kingsmen past Bethesda University, 65-55 and UC Santa Cruz, 75-61 inside Gilbert Arena. The senior guard had a season-high 29 points against Bethesda, just two points shy of his career-high, and he shot 64.7% from the field on 11-of-17 shooting. In the first half, Smith scored eight straight points for CLU to give the Kingsmen a comfortable lead and finished a perfect 6-for-6 from the free-throw line. Smith was also active on the defensive end and had a game-high four steals while also adding seven rebounds and four assists. After trailing to UC Santa Cruz at halftime, the Bakersfield, Calif. native led all players with 12 points in the second-half as the Kingsmen outscored the Banana Slugs 45-29 on their way to victory. Smith remained perfect from the free-throw line during the week after another 6-for-6 performance and he finished the game with 16 points, six rebounds, three assists and one block.