Lucian Smith rewrites record book at Lisbon

By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
LISBON -- Extreme rewriting -- that's what the Lisbon High basketball record book will need when this season ends.
In the past two weeks, senior Lucian Smith, only the fifth player in school history to score 1,000 career points, has broken three school records, including one set 51 years ago.
Depending on how the Blue Devils (16-4) fare in tournament play, the 6-foot guard has a shot at breaking two more.
"He's quite a performer," said Lisbon coach Joe Siefke of Smith, a four-year varsity player who broke Don Blair's career scoring mark (1,285 points) Feb. 10 against Crestview.
In the same game, a 90-82 overtime victory, Smith scored 47 points to break Dean Nicholson's 44-point effort set in 1953. Smith's previous game high was 27 points.
Last Friday, on Senior Night in Lisbon's regular season finale, Smith scored 20 points in a 61-50 victory over United to give him 439 this season, four more than Zach Williams scored in 1996.
More on horizon
Siefke says Smith needs four more 3-pointers to break Williams' record of 44 for a season and 17 more field goals to surpass current Lisbon assistant coach Mark Pezzano's record of 169.
Lisbon opens tournament play Monday at 7 p.m. against South Range.
Those who know his family aren't surprised by Smith's success. His brother, J.D., played with Williams before graduating in 1997.
Their father, Lee, was the second-leading scorer and top rebounder on the 1970 team advanced to the district final before losing to Oberlin Firelands by one point.
Two ago, Lee Smith died of a heart attack two days before he was to be inducted into Lisbon's Athletic Hall of Fame.
"Lucian's dad is never far from his thoughts," Siefke said. "When he scored his 1,000th point, the first thing he did was point to the sky."
Similar
Gary Pike, who coached Blair and Lee Smith, said, "I see a lot of Lee in Lucian. Both are strong competitors with a tremendous desire to win.
"Lee was one of the biggest jumpers I ever had to coach. He loved blocking shots, had terrific timing and was a strong defensive player. Lucian has a lot of those traits."
Smith credited his dad's guidance for turning him into a gym rat.
"The earliest [basketball] memories I have is working outside with both of them," Smith said. "Dad was working with J.D., but they would let me play.
"We had a hoop down at our house on Chestnut Street. My dad wouldn't let me shoot from the front because we had a [swimming] pool in the back, so he would have me shoot from the sides. Now, my least favorite shot is a corner shot."
After Lisbon started 0-4 start three years ago, Smith was promoted to starter. The Blue Devils have gone 60-22 since, including a tournament loss to LeBron James-led Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary in 2001.
Points galore
Smith enters the postseason with 1,387 career points and a streak of 42 games in double figures. This season, he's averaging 22 points, four assists, four steals and three rebounds per game.
A National Honor Society member with a grade-point average of 3.95, Smith said he hasn't decided where he will attend college to major in accounting, but it will be a Division I school.
"I want to go to a bigger school. Right now, I'm just waiting to see if anything turns up," said Smith who's prepared to try out as a walk-on player.
Noting that the Lisbon Hall has only a few father-and-son members, Pike said he won't be surprised when the list grows.
"I'm sure Lucian will be in there with his dad right after the [required] 10 years passes."
williams@vindy.com