Kaylene Smikle is a 6-foot versatile guard who brings Lady Vols head coach Kim Caldwell the on-floor leadership the team needs in this new-look season. In Saturday’s open practice, she was a force on both ends of the court. According to unofficial stats, she scored 30 points in the scrimmage.

“She’s a great player,” Caldwell said during Thursday’s media day. “She finds a way to make things happen. And she’s more than just her offense. She’s very good on the defensive end of flying around, getting to the ball, getting a deflection, making sure that we get the ball back. And she is tremendous at 50-50 balls. There’s a ball going out of bounds where one player will stop and look because they think the play is dead.

“She’s gonna beat you to it, and she’s gonna save it and continue to play. She has a winner mentality. She has a no-quit mentality. And I didn’t necessarily know that watching her film. So it’s been a great surprise seeing her in practice compete the way she competes. She wants to be coached.…