.@rachelbanham15 is off to the @WNBA!
Banham Picked Fourth by @ConnecticutSun 👉 https://t.co/P2dbXcuikS pic.twitter.com/OPLsbOSwsb
— Minnesota Women's Basketball (@GopherWBB) April 15, 2016
Former Minnesota Gopher guard Rachel Banham was selected No. 4 overall in the WNBA Draft Thursday night by the Connecticut Sun.
The Sun used their second first round pick on Banham after taking UConn forward Morgan Tuck with the third overall pick.
WATCH @rachelbanham15 get picked: https://t.co/PhuYJQXVEb
— Minnesota Women's Basketball (@GopherWBB) April 15, 2016
Banham had one of the greatest years in women’s college basketball history in 2015-16 for the Gophers. Her list of accomplishments was long.
- Became the Gophers all-time career scoring leader
- Tied an NCAA Division I single-game women’s scoring record
- Became the Big Ten’s career scoring leader with 3,093 points
- Won the NCAA’s 3-point contest
Additionally the senior, who was coming off an ACL injury, averaged 28.6 points per game. She broke the 40-point mark three times during the season including an NCAA record-tying 60 at Northwestern.
Banham also broke her own school record with 119 3-pointers in 2015-16 and was named first-team All-American by the Associated Press, espnW, the John R. Wooden Award and the USBWA.
FOX Sports Net notes that Banham is the fourth Gopher player in program history to be selected in the first round of the WNBA Draft – joining Amanda Zahui B. (2015), Janell McCarville (2005) and Lindsay Whalen (2004).
Lynx acquire Jia Perkins from San Antonio
The defending WNBA champion Minnesota Lynx didn’t have a first round pick Thursday night, but that didn’t stop them from making a splashy move.
The Lynx selected guard Jazmon Gwathmey with their first second round pick (No. 14 overall). Then just minutes later the Lynx sent the newly drafted Gwathmey to San Antonio in a trade for veteran guard Jia Perkins.
TRADE ALERT: The #Lynx trade 14th overall pick Jazmon Gwathmey to San Antonio in exchange for Jia Perkins. #WDraft16
— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) April 15, 2016
Perkins is an 11-year WNBA veteran. She averaged 11.7 points and 3.0 rebounds per game for San Antonio last year.
