Burbank, IL (February 28, 2011) - The Reavis Athletic Department is pleased to announce that boys' basketball head coach Jeff Smith was named South Suburban Conference Coach of the Year. The voting occurred at the annual end-of-the-year conference coaches' meeting held at Hillcrest High School on Saturday.
Smith, in his fourth year at the helm of the Rams' program, has had a great season. He has guided his squad to a share of the SSC Title with an 18-7 over-all record and an 8-5 conference mark. This is a significant improvement from last year's fourth place finish and 4-9 record in SSC play. The Rams also had a great showing during tournament play this year. They won the Reavis Thanksgiving Tournament and finished third in the 16-team Lemont Christmas Invitational, the best finish for a Rams team in tournament history.
According to Smith, much of the credit to his success this year goes to his players. "They were so dedicated, especially throughout the off-season," he said. "The kids played literally every day of the spring and summer and it really paid off in the end.
When the season began, not many people felt the Rams had any chance of winning the conference. Even the experts forgot about Reavis basketball. "The Southtown didn't even include us in their season preview and my players were upset about it," said Smith, "but I told them 'don't ever let anyone tell you that you can't do something'."
Smith will be honored in the fall at the South Suburban Conference banquet along with all of the other coaches who have won the coach of the year award for their respective sports. Congratulations, Coach Smith!