The greatest athlete in the history of Buffalo State will be honored during the “Tribute to Randy Smith” at halftime of the Bengals’ men’s basketball game against Cortland on Friday, Feb. 19 at the Sports Arena.

Smith was a three-sport All-American in basketball, soccer and track from 1967-71. He died from a heart attack last June while working out. The tribute will include remarks from his former coaches and teammates as well as a proclamation by Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown naming Feb. 19 as Randy Smith Day in Buffalo.  Smith’s mother, wife and daughter will be on hand for the ceremony that will include a banner in his honor being lifted to the rafters.

After graduation, Smith went on to play 12 seasons in the NBA, including seven with the hometown Buffalo Braves.  In addition to earning the NBA “Iron Man” distinction for playing in 906 consecutive games, Smith was named MVP of the 1978 NBA All-Star game.

Smith is still the leading scorer in Buffalo State men’s basketball history with 1,712 career points in just three varsity seasons, and holds the school’s single-season record for points (716) and average (26.5) and led his teams to three SUNYAC Championships and a 57-17 overall record.  In addition, Smith paced the Bengals to the NCAA College Division Final Four in 1970.  In soccer, he holds the school record for most goals in a three-year career (40). He was an All-American in track in the triple jump and, in 1969, set an NCAA triple jump record at 52 feet, 1 ¼ inches.

The Bengals men’s basketball game vs. Cortland is scheduled for an 8 p.m. tipoff with the ceremony set for halftime.  Buffalo State’s women’s basketball team will play Cortland at 6 p.m. as part of its “Pink Zone” celebration, an event geared to raise money and awareness for the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund.

Tickets for the doubleheader are $5 and will be available at the Sports Arena ticket window beginning at 5 p.m. on game day.