Paulisha Kellum, charged with replacing Sharnee Zoll at point guard for the Virginia women's basketball team, has been lost for the season with a torn ACL in her right knee, the school announced Thursday.

"This is a tremendous loss for our program," coach Debbie Ryan said in a news release.

The Cavaliers were picked to finished fourth in the ACC in the league's preseason media poll, with forward Monica Wright named to the preseason all-ACC team and the return of forward Lyndra Littles and center Aisha Mohammed and most of the team that went 24-10 that season. But the loss of four-year starter and the ACC's all-time assists leader Zoll, could not be overstated.

Ryan, at the ACC's media day last week, said Wright had picked up the leadership slack, but filling the point guard role itself "is just crucial."

"We're going to do it more by committee," Ryan said at the time, naming Kellum, freshman Ariana Moorer, of Woodbridge, and senior Britnee Millner as committee members.

Kellum, a 5-foot-8 junior from Upper Marlboro, Md., started at the 2 guard spot in 31 of 33 games last season, averaging 9 points pergame. Millner, a senior from Martinsville, averaged 2 points and 0.7 rebounds a game in 13 games last season.

Moorer was an AAU All-American and was a two-time all-state performer for C.D. Hylton High School in Woodbridge. According to the news release, Kellum was injured in a scrimmage against George Mason on Saturday and the extent of the injury was revealed by an MRI on Tuesday.