Mara Braun, the freshman from Wayzata who led the Gophers women’s basketball team in scoring this season, says she has no plans to leave the University of Minnesota following the unexpected departure of head coach Lindsay Whalen.
Whalen allegedly stepped down from her role as head coach last week. The news broke one day after Minnesota’s season ended with a loss to Penn State in the Big Ten tournament. Athletics director Mark Coyle claims the decision was made “mutually,” though Whalen has yet to address the issue publicly.
“We came here to represent the state and turn the program around and I intend to help finish what we started. Coach Whalen and I have talked and she wants this for us as well,” Braun told KFAN’s Justin Gaard. “To shut down any speculation I am a Gopher and look forward to continuing Coach Whalen’s vision for us and the program.”
Some good @GopherWBB news this morning: @marabraun10 tells me she is staying at Minnesota. Statement: "We came here to represent the state and turn the program around and I intend to help finish what we started. Coach Whalen and I have talked and she wants this for us as well…
— Justin Gaard (@Gaardsy) March 7, 2023
Shortly after Braun made her decision, fellow 2022-23 freshman Mallory Heyer and Nia Holloway followed suit, confirming that they too would be returning to the Gophers. Amaya Battle, the fourth member of Minnesota’s highly-touted 2022 recruiting class, has not yet announced any plans.
It’s common in NCAA basketball for players to enter the transfer portal following a coaching change, so Braun sticking around provides an assurance to the next head coach that they’ll have one of the top freshman in the Big Ten on the roster in 2023-24.
