Landing five-star recruits is typically reserved for the blue bloods of college basketball, but the Gopher women’s basketball team has done it behind head coach Lindsay Whalen.
The Gophers announced that Kadiatou Sissoko, a 2018 five-star recruit from Paris, France, is transferring to the University of Minnesota.
Sissoko spent her freshman season at Syracuse and will have to sit out the 2019-20 season per NCAA transfer rules and then have three years of eligibility beginning with the 2020-21 season.
The 6-foot-2 forward was the 10th-ranked player in ESPN’s 2018 recruiting rankings, and the No. 2 overall guard. She’s the highest-ranked recruit the women’s basketball team has landed since Lakeville’s Rachel Banham committed to the Gophers as the No. 19-ranked recruit in 2011.
“Kadi brings a great level of versatility that we are extremely excited about,” Whalen said in a release. “Her size at her position, as well as being able to play multiple positions, is a strength that only adds to our roster. We are thrilled to welcome Kadi to our Gopher family.”
Landing a former five-star recruit comes on the heels of Whalen having her jersey retired by the Minnesota Lynx on Saturday, where it now hangs in the rafters of Target Center.
