NORMAN ― Less than seven months have passed since Ana Llanusa had surgery to repair her injured knee.

But this week she cleared a significant hurdle: full contact.

“Everything they’re doing, I’m able to do it,” the sixth-year guard said Friday after the OU women’s basketball team finished practice for an upcoming foreign tour. “I don’t have to sit out anymore, so that’s been really positive and fun.”

Llanusa started the first 10 games last season before tearing her anterior cruciate ligament on Dec. 10. The pop was so loud, Llanusa at first feared she’d snapped a bone in her leg.

She had surgery to repair her torn anterior cruciate ligament on Jan. 6, and even though she’s been cleared for contact, she is wearing a brace and is likely to continue to wear it for quite some time.

Tramel:Why Bob Stoops talked OU men's basketball team into visiting Normandy

Still, having her back on the court has been big for the Sooners.

“She’s going at it,” OU coach Jennie Baranczyk said. “That part has been fun to see on an individual level, but then when her team sees that, that’s when I think it’s really cool.”

Baranczyk said it’s unlikely Llanusa will play in games during the team’s tour in France, which begins next week. But once she does return to action, Llanusa is hoping to stay injury free, which has been difficult during her college career. She missed a smattering of games due to injury as a sophomore and as a junior. Then she missed the entire 2020-21 season with a back injury.

Last season was her triumphant return. 

In the first 10 games, she averaged 17.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. 

Then came the injury in a game against BYU.

Carlson:Picking the Mount Rushmore of OU women's sports was difficult. Here's who made the cut

“The process has been tough,” Llanusa said. “Definitely my hardest injury that I’ve ever had to deal with.”

She had to wait almost a month after her injury before she had surgery. The first issue was COVID; she tested positive just a day or two after being injured. Only after she was COVID-free could she have her knee evaluated to determine next steps.

Even though Llanusa said her knee injury was extremely difficult, she believes she got back to full contact less than seven months after surgery because of how she attacked rehabilitation.

“I started rehab literally the day after my surgery,” she said. “I was in here working with Brittani (Merrick, the team’s trainer), bending my leg the day after surgery. 

“I think just the mental process, the physical process as a whole, ACL is like none other.”