Saint Louis head women's basketball coach Lisa Stone today announced that senior forward Myriama Smith Traore will miss the 2021-22 season after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her left knee.

"We are devastated and feel extremely bad for Myriama," Stone said. "She is the heart of our team and has put in extraordinary effort to be one of the best players in our program's history. Her presence on the court will be missed, but we will rally around her and play for her this season. Myriama is an exceptional person whom we all love, and we will be by her side every moment on her journey to recovery. The time is now for other members of our team to step up, and I am confident they will."

The injury occurred during practice on Wednesday, Oct. 27. Smith Traore is under the care of Dr. Scott Kaar of SSM Health, the Billikens' longtime head physician and orthopedic specialist.

Smith Traore was one of the Atlantic 10 Conference's leading rebounders the past two seasons. She led the league on the boards as a sophomore in 2019-20 with 8.7 per game, and last season she pulled down an average of 9.1.

Her 8.8 career rebounds per game rank fourth all-time at SLU.

Smith Traore also ranked third in the A-10 last season with a .519 field goal percentage and fourth with 1.2 blocks per game.