Everyone has seen the potential, the flashes of brilliance, the tools. Junior wing Jayla Smith has what it takes to be an impact player for Katie Gearlds and Purdue. Why hasn't she gotten to that point yet? Consistency.
"Consistency is a big thing for me. Last season --- it was up and down at times, but this season that needs to be locked in for me with consistency," Smith said.
Coming into the year, Gearlds was straightforward regarding her desire to see the former Indiana Miss Basketball come into her own and become one of the leaders for the Boilermakers. Smith took a step towards accomplishing her head coach's goal with a stellar showing in Purdue's 106-45 exhibition victory over Quincy on Sunday afternoon.
Smith scored a game-high 20 points on 8-11 shooting from the field in the blowout win for the Boilermakers and her point total would have been a career-best if the game wasn't an exhibition.
The 6'0" wing showed the ability to score at all three levels, while being aggressive by attacking the paint and getting easy looks in transition. Finishing around the rim was something Smith wanted to improve on heading into the year and she put those improvements on full display early.
"For me personally, finishing is a big aspect for me this season. You know, last season I had times where the ball should have went in, easy layups, something like that" Smith said.
These types of performances aren't a surprise to head coach Katie Gearlds, who sees the potential oozing from Smith on a daily basis. The junior wing flirts with greatness on a consistent basis and Gearlds wants that to be the expectation, because she knows just how special the junior can be.
"There's not a lot of Jayla Smith's in the country," Gearlds said.
"I think like we see that all the time from Jayla," Gearlds said. "We know what Jayla has --- we hold Jayla to these like crazy high standard and I don't know if Jayla knows how high we hold her."
Gearlds credits a lot of Smith's success in the unofficial start to the year to her daily workout sessions with assistant coach Alex Guyton and graduate assistant Abby Downard. The junior comes in every morning to get extra work in and build good habits, which were present on Sunday afternoon.
Smith viewed Purdue's exhibition matchup as an opportunity to set the tone for the rest of what she hopes is a breakout junior campaign, and it will be if she can replicate the showing moving forward.
"Coming off of last season, I know the impact that I had to bring to this team as well. So this first game I looked at it as what I can bring down the line to the rest of the season. So I think I just have to have the same mindset as when I go to UCLA, and then next game the next game, no matter who it is," Smith said.
How will she do that? Well, Smith knows that confidence is key for how she performs on the court. That confidence will lead to more consistency, which is what the Boilermakers need out of their "X-Factor" this season.
"I think it's a mindset thing. You know, I had to tell myself at times, like, keep going, don't let up. I have to be locked in offensively and defensively," Smith said. "I think confidence, stepping out there with confidence and knowing that your shot will go in is the big step."
Jayla Smith is the key that could unlock a new level of success for Purdue coming off its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2017 last season. The Boilermakers return five players from that team, and know what to expect from four of them, but Katie Gearlds admitted that Smith was the wild card of the group.
Luckily for Purdue, the early return has been positive for Smith.
"Kind of knew what we were gonna get from the four of them and then Jayla was really the coin toss and she responded in the in the right way," Gearlds said.
The Boilermakers will need her to continue the strong start as a gauntlet in the non-conference slate awaits them, starting with a trip to No. 4 UCLA next Monday in the team's regular season opener.
