COLLINSVILLE — Mark Smith was a newly minted Missouri baseball commitment a year ago, a right-hander perhaps ultimately bound for the Tigers’ rotation, when Edwardsville started play in the 2015 State Farm Classic in Bloomington.
An elbow injury to his throwing arm, Tim Jamieson’s resignation as Missouri baseball coach, a decommitment and a year later, Smith played his first game of the 33rd annual Collinsville Holiday Classic on Wednesday as a wide-open basketball recruit with Kansas State — represented by former Illinois assistant Chris Lowery — in attendance.
Smith holds scholarship offers from DePaul and Loyola. Illinois is among the teams that has expressed interest, along with the Wildcats, Northwestern and Pittsburgh.