Scoring 1,000 points in both high school and college is something not seen commonly in basketball, but Class of 2019 PV graduate Brianna Smith accomplished this feat. On Jan. 13, Smith scored her 1,000th career point on the William Paterson Women’s Basketball Team with a 77-71 win against Rutgers-Camden.
While she was in high school, she got to play under Coach Jeff Jasper, and he was complimentary of her game.
“She was just a machine, and because she had Stephen Curry range on her shot, she had to be guarded from anywhere,” Jasper said. “People would say, ‘I don’t have to guard her there,’ and then she drains a shot from four steps beyond the three-point line.”
Smith’s three-point shot was the best asset of her game. In her junior year alone at Pascack Valley, she hit 115 three-pointers. Her career total at PV was 277 three-pointers.
According to Smith, Coach Jasper had a large impact on her.
“I [came to Valley] as an immature player [after] I finished eighth grade,” Smith said. “Jasper remodeled me [in high school] and made me the player I am today. He showed me that you have to fight and put in work beyond practice to earn a spot, and that’s for sure what I did.”
As Smith wrapped up her high school career, she decided to play at the Division II level at Bloomsburg University but transferred to William Paterson, where she would reach the 1,000-point mark. Brie Smith would talk about her college choices.
“I decided to commit to Bloomsburg because of the school and the players. They were very welcoming,” Smith said. “When the season was about to start, I realized that it was much different than what I thought. Even though I loved my friends and teammates there, I needed to be closer to home.”
When she realized that she needed to be closer to home, she knew William Paterson would be a great fit.
“Because it was Covid, I didn’t get to meet the team really, but I knew a few people on the team from basketball and William Paterson became the perfect fit for me and great for my elementary education major,” Smith said.
Brie Smith still comes back to PV to support the team and participate in Dream Team practices. Jasper reflected on her lasting impact on the Pascack Valley Basketball team.
“She will come back from time to time to play for the Dream Team, and always has a positive impact,” Jasper said. “She has such a generous spirit. She is very humble and she’s a great role model.”
For Brie Smith, scoring 1,000 points was one of the highlights of her high school career.
“My junior year of high school, I scored my 1000 points in a playoff game against Teaneck. The game started, and I scored a layup,” Smith said. “Then, the horn blew, and I thought they called a timeout, but nope, I scored my 1000th point. It came to a total shock for me. In that moment, I knew all that hard work and Jasper pushing me and yelling at me paid off.”
Scoring 1,000 points in high school and college is something not seen very often, but Brie Smith did it.
