Gophers women's basketball coach Marlene Stollings tried her best after last season to persuade Amanda Zahui B. to hold off leaving school early for the WNBA draft.
The sales pitch was that Zahui B., a first-team All-American center, could be the face of college basketball by returning for her junior season this fall.
"She knew that was a possibility," Stollings said, "but the lure and attraction of possibly being the No. 1 pick and the financial piece overseas was too big of a factor."
So instead of welcoming back a 6-foot-5 co-Big Ten player of the year, Stollings was faced with arguably the biggest challenge of any coach in the nation.