Vocal, yes. But Illinois recruit Hayven Smith follows through for Lincoln-Way East. ‘She backs up her words.’

If you spend some time on the sidelines of a Lincoln-Way East practice, it’s not hard to pick out senior center Hayven Smith.

The Illinois commit is the most animated of the players watching the Griffins scrimmage as she waves her arms and yells encouragement to her teammates.

“Attack, attack,” she implores as she stands among fellow seniors in guard Lana Kerley and forward Maddie Yacobozzi. When a shot falls short of the rim, she exhorts, “Rebound, rebound.”

Then she hits the floor and does just that — attack and rebound. That’s her leadership philosophy, and it matters most to Kerley.

“She’s not just one of those people who vocally says it — she backs up her words,” Kerley said. “If she’s telling us to go hard, if we’re not rebounding good, she’s telling us to get more rebounds.

“She sets that first. She does it, and we follow in her footsteps.”

That’s how it has been all season for the Griffins, who have reaped the benefits heading into Tuesday’s Class 4A Joliet West Sectional semifinal against Sandburg (19-14).

Lincoln-Way East (27-5) has beaten the Eagles four times already this winter.

Not only has Smith surpassed the 1,000-point career threshold, she’s averaging a team-best 13 points and eight rebounds. She’s shooting 67% from the floor, 73% from the free-throw line.

Her team’s performance, especially the gaudy record, hasn’t been a surprise to Smith. The plan was to be in this position for the playoffs and to go even further.

“It’s satisfying to see it all fall into place,” she said. “There are some losses we’ve had that would have been great wins, but at the same time, it’s one of the best seasons Lincoln-Way East has had in a while.”

High school basketball has been a whirlwind for the 6-foot-6 Smith, who committed last spring to Illinois. She received her first Division I offer from Purdue after her freshman season.

Bear in mind that was during the pandemic, so there were a lot of phone calls and Zoom meetings. But once that first offer came, the recruiting process seemingly was just beginning.

“I never knew if it would all ever just fall into place,” she recalled. “Just waiting, they are trying to figure out if they want to take their chance on me.

“When finally somebody took that chance on me, I think it opened up a whole other world — not just for coaches to realize maybe they can take a chance on me but for myself too.”

Smith has stepped into that world with both feet and is now on the precipice of not only special things this postseason but well beyond.

So what kind of player is Illinois getting? Lincoln-Way East coach Jim Nair has no doubts, particularly since she has maintained her production despite nearly constant double teams.

“I think the sky is the limit with Hayven in the sense that her basketball IQ is very high,” Nair said. “She has a great touch, and her shot is phenomenal.

“She’s only going to get stronger and quicker with the University of Illinois.”

A lot of people taught Smith how to play the post effectively, including her dad’s best friend, former Chicago Bulls center Will Perdue. And Perdue’s counsel was not just on-the-court stuff.

“He helped me a lot when I was just trying to figure out who I was, what I wanted to do, where I wanted to be,” she said. “Just giving me his two cents.”

And now, Smith is within striking distance of a trip to state. That all starts back up Tuesday night against the Eagles, a dangerous team after upsetting Romeoville 62-58 in a regional final.

But as usual, Smith is rallying her teammates.

“This time, it’s just going in with a little chip,” she said, before correcting herself.

“Not even a little chip,” she said. “Because I’m not losing.”

Gregg Voss is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.