Zahui B.'s Dominance For Gophers Has Been Years In The Making
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- She's 6-foot-5 – more like 7-foot-8 with that fabulous hair – and has one of the most interesting names you'll come across: Amanda Zahui B.
The center for the Gophers women's basketball team shortened her last name before coming to America to spare herself the pain of people constantly mispronouncing it.
For the record, it's Amanda Zahui Bazoukou.
"Zahui B.'s easier," she said with a laugh. "And it's easier for everybody else who wants to pronounce it."
Either way, she's becoming a household name now. The Swedish sensation has been the talk of women's basketball this past week.
On Saturday, Zahui B. scored 27 points and had 27 rebounds to lead the Gophers to a 91-88 double-overtime win over Michigan.
That, just a game after dropping 39 points and a Big Ten record 29 rebounds in an upset win over Iowa. Total it up, that's 66 points and 56 rebounds in two games. Yes, two games.
Wowie Zahui indeed.
"Hard work and a blessing," she said. "That's pretty much (it). I'm blessed, and I've been working hard since I started."
How she started is pretty interesting. After all, Sweden isn't exactly a women's basketball hotbed.
"It's not like here in America, not even close," she said with a laugh. "But, you know, we're taking baby steps."
She left home at the age of 15 to play for a club team outside of Stockholm. She had her own apartment, cooked her own meals and basically became an adult at the age of 15. And she said it's a big reason why she's the player she is today.
"I definitely had to grow up much faster, and I got to play with older players," she said. "It really helped me to grow and become that mature and bigger person that I am today."
She started playing on the Swedish national team at 13. College teams noticed, then started recruiting her. The Gophers were one of them.
"It just felt right," she said of her decision to come to the U of M. "Everything about it."
The Gophers are certainly reaping the benefits now.
