Seton Hall guard LaTecia Smith to transfer to UNLV Lady Rebels

The Lady Rebels are getting another weapon.

Seton Hall guard LaTecia Smith will transfer and will join the team, UNLV coach Kathy Olivier announced Tuesday. Smith is the second Division I transfer to come to the Lady Rebels this spring, joining Bailey Thomas from West Virginia.

“LaTecia is an explosive perimeter player that can finish strong to the basket,” Olivier said in a release. “She’s a hard worker who loves to compete, and we’re excited to have another good student who is psyched to be a Lady Rebel.”

A 5-foot-6-inch guard from Gardena, California, Smith appeared in 59 games in two years for the Pirates. She started 28, including 25 last season. Last year she was third n the team with 8.9 points per game and was second on the squad with 77 assists. Seton Hall earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament in 2016, her freshman season.

Because of NCAA transfer rules, Smith will have to sit out the 2017-18 season, and will have two years of eligibility remaining beginning in 2018.

UNLV returns 10 players from last year’s team that went 22-11 and earned an at-large bid to the WNIT. The Lady Rebels will be without stars Dakota and Dylan Gonzalez, who announced this month they will not return for their final seasons of eligibility in order to pursue their music careers.

Contact Justin Emerson at jemerson@reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2944. Follow @J15Emerson on Twitter.