Michael Smith

Sport: Women's Basketball
Year: Second Season
Position: Head Coach

Michael Smith begins his second season as the Truman women’s basketball head coach in 2009 after being named the ninth head coach of the Truman women’s basketball program in April of 2008. Smith previously served as an assistant coach at the University of Arkansas-Little Rock as well as a head coach at Moberly Area Community College.

In his first season at Truman, the Bulldogs went 8-19 and tied for eighth in the MIAA. The squad won four of their final six games and lost a standings tie-breaker for the right to compete in the conference’s post-season tournament.

Smith graduated from Central Methodist University and began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Northwest Missouri State University in 1996. Upon completion of his master’s degree in 1998, Smith was hired as an assistant coach at Angelo State University (San Angelo, Texas).

After a successful four seasons at ASU which ended with back-to-back Lone Star Conference South Division Championships, a conference tournament title and an NCAA tournament berth in 2002, Smith was then named head coach at Moberly (Mo.) Area Community College. In his first head coaching job, Smith guided the Lady Greyhounds to a 102-34 record over the next four seasons.

During his tenure at MACC, the Lady Greyhounds were ranked nationally in the Top 25 poll 27 times between 2003 and 2006 and peaked as high as number two in the 2005-2006 preseason ranking. The Lady Greyhounds made consecutive NJCAA National Tournament appearances for the first time in 15 years and won the consolation championship at the tournament in 2005.

Personally, Smith was named Region XVI and District L Coach of the Year twice while at MACC.

Prior to his tenure beginning at Truman, Smith served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Division I University of Arkansas-Little Rock.

In his first year, the Trojans went 21-10, which was a school record in wins, and had the third best scoring defense in Division I – holding opponents to just under 53 points a game. Last season, the Trojans set another school record with 23 wins and captured the school’s first Sun Belt Conference West Division championship. They received a bid to the WNIT tournament and finished with again the third best scoring defense in Division I at 52.0 ppg.

Smith and his wife Melanie live in Kirksville with their two sons, Cooper and Devin.