Houston, Texas (AHN) - The Minnesota Lynx will be without their whirling dervish of a point guard for the remainder of the season as rookie Lindsey Harding, the No. 1 overall selection in this year's draft, will sit out the remainder of her rookie campaign with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee.

"It is extremely upsetting to see my first season in the WNBA end this way," said Harding. "I will work as hard as I can to rehab my knee, and I will definitely be back next season."

Minnesota's exciting floor leader was injured Tuesday at Washington and the tear was confirmed by MRI on Thursday. Harding plans to undergo surgery, followed by a strenuous rehabilitation period in an effort to be ready for training camp next April.

Harding was one of the few bright spots for the struggling Lynx as she led all rookies in scoring, averaging 11.7 points to go along with 3.9 assists per game and an opportunistic 4.4 rebounds per game, second among all rookies.

The Phoenix Mercury selected Harding with the first overall pick by and traded her to Minnesota.

Harding was the second-leading scorer on her Duke team last season, averaging 13.6 points, four rebounds and 3.9 assists per game for the Blue Devils.

Harding had a chance to send the Blue Devils to the Final Four this past March when she went to the free throw line with just seconds left in an Elite Eight game against Rutgers. However, she missed both the freebies and Rutgers prevailed 53-52.