‘She’s a centerpiece’: Downingtown East grad Bella Smuda leads Liberty back to the NCAA Tournament

In March Madness it’s easy for the smaller programs to get lost in the mix.

Not so much for Liberty and Bella Smuda.

The redshirt senior has been with the Flames for all five seasons of her collegiate career. Now, after she led them to a Conference USA tournament title, Liberty (26-6) will go dancing for the first time since 2018.

Liberty is riding an 11-game winning streak into its 18th NCAA . Smuda and the 13th-seeded Flames are set to take on No. 4 seed Kentucky (22-7) on Friday (noon, ESPN).

“It’s such an awesome opportunity,” Smuda said. “The fact that we even get to be here is so awesome, just because there’s so many teams whose seasons are already over.”

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Smuda was first team all-Conference USA and on the all-defensive team. She’s averaging a team-high 11.8 points and 6.7 rebounds.

“She’s a centerpiece,” Liberty head coach Carey Green said. “She’s a centerpiece on the table. You sit down, you come in, you look at the table, but your eyes go to the centerpiece, and that’s what she is.”

In the C-USA title game, Smuda helped the Flames flip the script on two-time defending champion Middle Tennessee and win, 53-48, for their 18th conference title. Smuda had a double-double (10 points, 13 rebounds) in the title game and was C-USA tournament MVP.

The game also was Smuda’s fourth opportunity at a conference championship victory — a major factor in her decision to return to Lynchburg, Va.-based Liberty for her fifth and final year of eligibility.

“I think losing in that conference championship last year really [made me want] to come back for my fifth year because it wouldn’t have felt as special winning this championship [somewhere else],” Smuda said. “Each year it builds up a little bit where you’re putting in work on top of last year’s work.”

Smuda has been working toward that buildup throughout her five years with the Flames. During Smuda’s sophomore season, she played behind Mya Berkman, a two time first team All-ASUN selection who holds the Liberty records for field-goal percentage (64.4%, No. 14 in NCAA Division I history) and games played (154).

But once Berkman graduated and made her way overseas to play, Smuda emerged as a leader on and off the court.

“When Mya left, that was Bella’s opening opportunity to start as a junior,” Green said. “From that point on, it’s been a development every year.”

And these developments aren’t just happening on the floor.

Smuda graduated from Liberty in May 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. As a fifth-year student, she’s working toward a master’s degree in elementary education and combining her education with her love of leadership and basketball.

“I got my undergrad in psychology, which I feel does help me see how people operate,” Smuda said. “I think the more you know people, the more you’re able to help lead them in different ways.”

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Smuda hails from Exton, where she was a first team all-state honoree as a senior at Downingtown East High School. As a four-year starter, Smuda scored over 1,000 points and grabbed over 1,000 boards, and in her senior season, she averaged 18.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 6.2 blocks.

But despite being a Philly girl, the decision to move nearly six hours away for college felt right to Smuda.

“I think that my parents were a huge support and encouraged me in what God wants me to do,” Smuda said. “I really felt like when I was deciding on a school and praying about where I should go, I really felt like Liberty was put on my heart.”

Now, with her final season wrapping up, Smuda will soak up every last moment in the program she joined when she was just 18 years old.

“I’ve been here for so long,” Smuda said. “I just love the school. They poured so much into me, and I want to do this with them.”