LBCC’s men’s and women’s basketball teams have more in common than you might think. Besides representing the same school, both teams boast winning records to enter the new year with big goals for the rest of the season. And both have freshmen who have made big impacts early on in their Roadrunner careers. LBCC’s Natalia McBride and Cade Smith are both second on their respective teams in points so far in their freshman seasons, and they chatted with The Commuter about their experience playing basketball, their goals for the rest of the season, and what it’s like playing on an empty campus over winter break.
How did you first get into basketball and sports in general growing up?
Natalia McBride: My whole family’s sort of into basketball so I started playing really at like five.
Cade Smith: My dad’s a track coach at my high school. So he’s always had me and my brother doing active stuff as we grew up and working out in the yard. I started off doing soccer and it was my first love of sports. And I got a really big concussion my eighth grade year and I had to medically stop playing. And that’s when I transitioned into fully playing basketball. And because I was so tall, I think it was like, 6-foot-3, going into freshman year, my dad was like, ‘Hey, you should try and competitively do basketball.’ And I was like, ‘Yeah, I mean, I’m tall enough for it. I’m athletic enough for it.’ I just put my nose to the grindstone and really tried to hustle on the varsity team.
At what point did you realize that basketball could be something worth pursuing beyond just high school?
NM: I would say my freshman year of high school was kind of when I started to realize that I can do more than just play basketball and I can use it to also pay for my education and stuff. That’s really when I started to drive to be able to do that.
CS: After freshman season because I had just started basketball in eighth grade, and I hadn’t really done much of it throughout middle school. And right when I picked it up, I knew I loved it and that I really wanted it bad. My coaches were telling me that I looked good out there and I had a lot of potential and I really just kind of bet on myself. And you know, it worked out.
How did you decide to come play basketball here at Linn-Benton?
NM: I was talking to a couple of schools and LB just had the best community, and just the vibes overall when I came on my visit were so much better than all the other schools I went to.
CS: One of my teammates from AAU [Amateur Athletic Union] actually is on the team, Zach Donahoo, and he introduced me to Coach Zimmermann and from there on out it was really like a storybook. He ended up inviting me to open gym and I ended up coming to every one. He ended up offering me a scholarship and I took it and here we are.
What are you majoring in here at Linn-Benton and how has your experience managing being in school and playing sports been?
NM: I’m dual enrolled at Oregon State. My major is biohealth science. And yeah, overall it’s been really easy because everybody’s really flexible and really just makes it as smooth as possible to get through everything.
CS: My major is psychology right now with a minor in forensic science. And it’s really just been a constant grind. You know, doing school literally right when I get off practice and doing homework. Straight to studying. When I wake up in the morning, that’s what I do. You know, anytime I have off, especially with taking math and chemistry in the same semester. I had to really stick to the books. So it’s just been hectic, but it’s also been a fruitful experience. I learned a lot this semester. It’s been fulfilling.
Do you have any hobbies or things you like to do outside of sports and school?
NM: I love music. I play guitar, piano, trombone, and clarinet. But other than that, there’s not a lot of time for other stuff outside of school and basketball.
CS: I collect vinyl records. I’m a big, big music fan. I love shoes. I love skate shoes. I love skating. I love tattoos. I’m really big into tattoos.
As a freshman, you’ve cracked the starting lineup here at LB, and you’re second on the team in points so far this year. How does it feel to be contributing so much to the team this early in your college career?
NM: I like it, but it is kind of stressful to start a game knowing that I have to contribute or otherwise, it might not go as well as we want. So it’s a lot of responsibility. But it’s also fun because I know my teammates are there for me too.
CS: Honestly, it feels great. I’ve put in so much hard work into my conditioning and overall fitness and really honing my skills. I really just want to help out the team in any way I can. Whether it’s a big role or small role, I really don’t care. I want to be the glue guy. I want to be the energy guy. I want to be making big plays. I just want to win so bad.
What would you say are the strengths that you bring to the team?
NM: I think I’m really good at keeping the team together because I’m not so much like a loud leader. I just like to make sure that everybody’s having a good time. Because it just goes better when everybody is.
CS: I crash the glass hard. I try to go after the ball. Especially with larger guys that are guarding me that are usually slower than I am, I get to the ball super easily. I say rebounding is definitely one of my strong suits and attacking the basket. When bigger guys are guarding me I can really turn their hips and get them off balance. Inside scoring is really one of my strong suits.
Your team is 8-2 to start this season. How has that strong start felt and what are your team’s goals for the rest of the year?
NM: It’s been a good start. It’s always nice to win, but those two losses were also just as important as the wins because it showed us that we can’t slack off. I think our goal going into the future is just to play as hard as we can because that’s something that we can do is play really hard and super scrappy, and super fast. But we don’t always do that because we lose focus. So keeping focus and just trekking forward.
Your team is 6-3 to start the season. How has that strong start felt and what are your team’s goals for the rest of the year?
CS: It feels good and it hasn’t been without its ups and downs. But we’ve made strides since the beginning of the season. And in practice, you can definitely see it defensively and offensively. We’re starting to really get into our rotation and just playing great defense to stop guys on transition and it just feels great seeing all these guys gel together. This is my family. This has been my family for the past four or five months. And it’s just great to see everything come to fruition. And see our potential really shine.
Do you have any personal goals for this season?
NM: I don’t have any big, personal goals. I just like to see where the season takes us but I just think staying together as a team and working really hard is a big one.
CS: I want to stay above .500. Just as a team, I really want to make the NWAC playoffs. That’s always the goal. And I think we can do it. Personal goals, I want to stay within the top 50 [in NWAC] scoring. I also want to stay within the top 50 for my rebounding and I really just want to create for myself a good starter for next season if I potentially come back here so I can build off of what we’re building on now.
It’s still early in your freshman year, but do you have any goals or plans for after LB?
NM: I do want to transfer to a four-year school and hopefully I can play basketball there but if not, it is what it is. And I’m planning on going into pre-med.
CS: I really want to play at a four-year and I really want to go D1, so that’s really been the ultimate goal since the start, but you know what? I’m really happy as long as I’m playing basketball.
Any four year schools in particular?
NM: I’m kind of toying with the idea of Oregon State but since I’m from Washington, the out-of-state tuition is my only hang up on that one. But Washington State and the University of Idaho are other options for me.
CS: Oregon State would be one. If any NAIA school would pick me up that’d be good too. Honestly, anywhere that offers a good education and offers me to play basketball. I’m blessed to have received a scholarship at any level honestly.
What has it been like having to show up to practice, play games, and be on campus when the rest of the school is on winter break?
NM: It’s very dead. We walk in, there’s no cars in the parking lot. There’s construction workers there. And a lot of us hang out with the volleyball team. So that’s also been kind of dead too. Because nobody’s here and they’ve been home for two-and-a-half weeks, now three weeks. So it just feels empty and almost like a ghost town.
CS: I mean, it’s challenging, but it also gives you a chance to really lock in on what you’re doing. There’s less distractions. There’s less hustle and bustle going around. And you know, when we’re in the gym, everything else disappears. So it really doesn’t bother me too much.