NORMAN — Fifth-year Sooner guard and team captain Whitney Hand, the clear on-court leader of Oklahoma women’s basketball, left the Sooners’ Thursday night game against North Texas with a left knee injury that very much appears to be season-ending.
Hand awkwardly planted her left foot to go up for a shot in the lane and her knee gave way in the process. She went down to the floor crying and had to be helped off, putting very little weight on her left knee.
Earlier in her Sooner career, Hand missed what would have been her true sophomore season to an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear to her right knee. All appearances point toward a tear of the left knee.
If Hand is out for the season, she would become the fourth Sooner to be lost, along with Lyndsey Cloman (back), Kaylon Williams (ruptured Achilles) and Maddie Manning (ACL). Also, as Long as Hand is unavailable, the Sooners will be down to just eight able bodies on their roster.
The arena fell quiet as Hand lay on the hardwood. She’s been the most indispensable Sooner for more than two years. If she’s done, she will be greatly missed.
For local news and more, subscribe to The Norman Transcript Smart Edition, or our print edition.
