San Diego hires Lamont Smith as men's basketball coach

The San Diego Torreros hired New Mexico assistant Lamont Smith Tuesday to be their men's basketball coach

The San Diego Torreros on Tuesday hired New Mexico assistant Lamont Smith to be their men's basketball coach, the team announced in a release. 

The former Torrero player from 1994-97 will replace former San Diego coach and longtime Gonzaga assistant Billy Grier, who was fired on March 16. 

Smith, who was not considered one of the leading candidates for the position at the coaching search's beginning, will become the 12th San Diego head coach in the program's history and the fifth since its ascension to D-I. 

Smith was New Mexico's associate head coach under Craig Neal for two seasons. Before that, he served as an assistant to Lorenzo Romar at the University of Washington for one season, and under Herb Sendek at Arizona State for four seasons. 

He is perhaps best known for his strong recruiting throughout the west coast.

San Diego finished 15-16 this season, going 8-10 in West Coast Conference games. It failed to make postseason play. 

- Will Green