While at Texas, Smith won gold with the American women's basketball team during the 1983 World University Games. In March 1984, Smith tore her tibia and anterior cruciate ligament and had surgery to fix the injuries in her left knee. Following surgery, Smith underwent over a year of physical therapy and did not play on the team until November 1985. At the 1986 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament, Smith and Texas won the championship final. That year, Smith completed her communications studies at Texas.