By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

DESPITE the setback of the first major injury of her career, Bahamian basketball star Lashann Higgs remains in perspective as she prepares for the rehab process.

“Not quite how I wanted my senior season to end but God knows best! Sometimes we may wonder why or try to understand why things happen but it’s important to know that God is in control,” Higgs posted on social media.

“I will be back stronger and wiser than before. I’m so thankful for my teammates, family and friends and the support of you all! Like they say a small setback for a major comeback.”

The Longhorns won the Gulf Coast Showcase tournament title, but suffered a major loss when Higgs went down with a knee injury in a hard-fought 56-55 win over Quinnipiac last Friday.

She was diagnosed with a season-ending torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her left knee.

Higgs went down late in the first half before being carried off the court by members of the Longhorns staff.

The Longhorns didn’t get a warmup for the second half and didn’t return to the floor until about 30 seconds were left in the 15-minute intermission.

“We were a little shellshocked,” head coach Karen Aston said. Texas went on to defeat Michigan in the semifinals and Fordham in the finals to improve to 6-0.

Through three games, Higgs was averaging 16.3 points, five rebounds and 4.3 assists per game on 56 percent shooting from the field.

She became the 44th player in Texas history to reach the 1000 point plateau when she scored 20 points in a 64-54 win over North Texas earlier this month.

Higgs entered her senior season projected to be one of the top players in the Big 12 conference and was named to the 10-member Preseason All-Big 12 Team.

She comes off a season where she claimed All-Big 12 Second Team, Big 12 All-Defensive Team, USWBA National Player of the Week and Big 12 Player of the Week.

As a junior, she started 35 games and averaged 12.8 points per game, which ranked third on the team, 3.3 rebounds per game and was third on the squad with 1.4 steals per game. Scored in double figures on 21 occasions, including four 20-plus point performances.

In her sophomore season, Higgs - the Harbour Island native - averaged eight points, three rebounds, 1.5 assists and one steal in just over 17 minutes per game. She built upon the numbers from her freshman season when she averaged 7.2 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game in 13.2 minutes.