Tennessee Lady Vols basketball guard Kaylene Smikle is two games into her season in Knoxville. Smikle is averaging 24.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.0 steals so far, and has shown a great ability to score in bursts and open up a game quickly.

On Tuesday, Smikle was named the Tennessee Sports Writers Association's Women's Basketball Player of the Week, becoming the first recipient of the season. In last week’s win on the road at Coppin State, Smikle scored 10 points in just over the first two and a half minutes of the third quarter. 

The Lady Vols got off to a slower start than expected in that game, and she played a huge part in getting the game back on track. Smikle got into some early foul trouble but made the most of her opportunity in the second half. She went on to finish the game with 18 points on 58.3% shooting from the field.

“It was great,” head coach Kim Caldwell said after the game. “She got in foul trouble early. We made the decision to sit the girls that had two. We had, I think, four players with two fouls in the really early, before the second quarter. 

“And that’s something we’ve been trying to hammer home and teach, is to play good defense without fouling. And sometimes the only way you can learn that lesson is when you’re sitting on the bench watching. And so when she got back in the game, she really took advantage of it.”

In her first game against Duquesne, Smikle went off for 31 points and shot 84.6% from the field. Smikle lit it up from beyond the arc, going 5-for-6 that night. She also grabbed eight rebounds, dished four assists, and recorded three steals to stuff the stat sheet.

“I think a play that stands out to me the most is she was on a scoring tear,” Caldwell said in the Duquesne postgame press conference. “And I don’t know how many she had, but you have players that once they get hot, it’s kind of human nature to stay hot. She had the ball coming up our sideline near our bench, and I thought for sure she was going to stop and pop, shoot another three, or get all the way to the rim. And she found Naomi [White] on a beautiful pass across the three-point line. Naomi hit it, and then they celebrated.

“I think that says a lot about who she is and who our culture is as a team. She wants to make the right play. She doesn’t necessarily care about how many points she scored, but she wants to win. She wants to make the right play. She wants to be an all-around great basketball player, and I think you guys got to see that today.”

Smikle and the Lady Vols are back at Food City Center on Tuesday night to host the New Haven Chargers. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET, and the game will be streamed on SECN+.

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