Get in the Game: The Best of University of Minnesota Athletics

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Lynx, led by former University of Minnesota standout and current Assistant Coach and Director of Quality Control Rachel Banham, are gearing up to kick off the 2023 WNBA Playoffs on Wednesday night against the Connecticut Sun. As the No. 6 seed, the Lynx will face the No. 3 seed Sun at the Mohegan Sun Arena at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN2.

This marks Banham’s third playoff appearance in four years since joining the Lynx in 2020. Throughout her eight-year WNBA career, she has clinched a playoff spot six times, only missing out in her rookie season in 2016 and with the Lynx in 2022. Her lone appearance in the WNBA Finals came in 2019 with the Connecticut Sun.

Known for her sharpshooting, Banham concluded the regular season with a solid 40.2 percent three-point shooting percentage, ranking seventh in the league. She also averaged 5.5 points, 1.7 assists, and 1.0 rebounds per game, while impressively shooting 46.2 percent from beyond the arc over the past 12 games. One of her standout performances was an 18-point game against the Indiana Fever.

The Lynx’s first-round playoff series will be a three-game matchup, with games one and two at the Mohegan Sun Arena and, if needed, game three at Target Center in Minneapolis. The action kicks off on ESPN2, with subsequent games slated for coverage on ESPN.

Keep up with the University of Minnesota women’s basketball on Twitter and Instagram (@GopherWBB) and Facebook for more updates during the offseason.