UTEP basketball names Lamont Smith top assistant

UTEP’s new head basketball coach Rodney Terry has found his top assistant.

Lamont Smith will join UTEP’s staff after spending the last three seasons as the head coach at the University of San Diego.

Smith resigned his position at USD in early March in the wake of a domestic violence accusation.

A woman accused Smith of domestic violence on Feb. 25 of this year. The woman, who claimed to be in a relationship with Smith, said she was assaulted at a San Francisco hotel, according to police.

Smith was arrested later that day on suspicion of domestic violence. His team had been in town for a game against the University of San Francisco. USD placed him on administrative leave the next day.

However, on March 6, the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office declined to file charges against Smith after reviewing the evidence.

Nonetheless, approximately two days later, Smith resigned from San Diego.

Under his guidance, the Toreros won 20 games in 2017-18, including a win at New Mexico State. That was NMSU’s only home loss of the season.

Smith, a native of The Colony, TX, says he’s happy to be back in the Lone Star State.

“My family and I are ecstatic about the opportunity to join the UTEP basketball program,” Smith said. “It’s like a dream to have the opportunity to be back in my home state of Texas coaching at a university with such a rich tradition of success in college basketball. Working with one of the top coaches in Rodney Terry made this an easy decision for me.”

Smith also served as an assistant at New Mexico from 2013-2015.