University of Minnesota Athletics
Two Gophers on Opening Day WNBA Rosters
5/19/2023 9:17:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Amanda Zahui B and Rachel Banham both start 2023 season tonight.
MINNEAPOLIS – The 2023 WNBA season is slated to begin Friday and the University of Minnesota women's basketball program has two former standouts that have made opening day rosters. Rachel Banham made the Minnesota Lynx roster in her eighth season while Amanda Zahui B made the Washington Mystics roster with the 2023 season being her eighth in the league as well.
The Golden Gophers are one of six Big Ten programs to have multiple representatives on opening day WNBA rosters.
Banham is entering her fourth season with the Lynx and is coming off her best statistical season in the WNBA. In 2022 the Lakeville, Minn., native averaged 7.9 points, 2.3 assists and shot 38.3 percent from beyond the arc and 43.0 percent from the floor. She started five games and averaged a career high 17.5 minutes per game for her home state team and made a career high 1.6 threes per contest.
Zahui B returns to the WNBA scene after a year away from the league in 2022. The Washington Mystics originally acquired the negotiating rights to Zahui B. from the Las Vegas Aces on February 5, 2023, in exchange for Washington's second round pick in the 2024 and 2025 WNBA draft. Zahui B. last played for the Los Angeles Sparks in 2021. In 30 games (27 starts), she averaged 9.2 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.2 blocks for the Sparks. The eight-year pro has appeared in 197 career games (71 starts) with Los Angeles (2021), New York (2016-2020) and Tulsa (2015), holding averages of 6.2 points and 4.0 rebounds in 15.7 minutes per game. Zahui B. also earned the WNBA Cares Community Assist Award in 2021.
Both the Washington Mystics and Minnesota Lynx open their 2023 seasons tonight with the Mystics tipping off against the New York Liberty at 6 p.m. CT while the Lynx tip against the Chicago Sky at 7 p.m. CT at Target Center.
For more information on the Gophers, continue to check back with GopherSports.com. Keep up with the University of Minnesota women's basketball on Twitter and Instagram (@GopherWBB) and on Facebook, so you do not miss any content during the offseason.
The Golden Gophers are one of six Big Ten programs to have multiple representatives on opening day WNBA rosters.
Banham is entering her fourth season with the Lynx and is coming off her best statistical season in the WNBA. In 2022 the Lakeville, Minn., native averaged 7.9 points, 2.3 assists and shot 38.3 percent from beyond the arc and 43.0 percent from the floor. She started five games and averaged a career high 17.5 minutes per game for her home state team and made a career high 1.6 threes per contest.
Zahui B returns to the WNBA scene after a year away from the league in 2022. The Washington Mystics originally acquired the negotiating rights to Zahui B. from the Las Vegas Aces on February 5, 2023, in exchange for Washington's second round pick in the 2024 and 2025 WNBA draft. Zahui B. last played for the Los Angeles Sparks in 2021. In 30 games (27 starts), she averaged 9.2 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.2 blocks for the Sparks. The eight-year pro has appeared in 197 career games (71 starts) with Los Angeles (2021), New York (2016-2020) and Tulsa (2015), holding averages of 6.2 points and 4.0 rebounds in 15.7 minutes per game. Zahui B. also earned the WNBA Cares Community Assist Award in 2021.
Both the Washington Mystics and Minnesota Lynx open their 2023 seasons tonight with the Mystics tipping off against the New York Liberty at 6 p.m. CT while the Lynx tip against the Chicago Sky at 7 p.m. CT at Target Center.
For more information on the Gophers, continue to check back with GopherSports.com. Keep up with the University of Minnesota women's basketball on Twitter and Instagram (@GopherWBB) and on Facebook, so you do not miss any content during the offseason.
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