Amanda Zahui B. is hoping Minnesota will be able to find the magic this year. A season ago, she joined the Gophers, and star guard Rachel Banham with the anticipation that her presence might be enough to lift Minnesota over the hump. The Gophers certainly showed their talent, and Zahui B. ended up leading the league in both rebounding and blocked shots. But the Gophers tumbled to a loss in the third round of the WNIT. Banham, now a senior, is still waiting for her first NCAA tournament appearance.

Will this season be the one? So far, the Gophers are off to a convincing start. In Minnesota's first game under new coach Marlene Stollings, the team pounded Southern Louisiana to the tune of a 109-60 victory -- a game in which four players scored 18 points or more (Zuhui B. was one of them). This afternoon, the Gophers wrapped up a 93-76 win over Cleveland State.

Before the season began, I caught Zuhui B. at media day. A few thoughts from her as she looked ahead:

What does the addition of transfer Shae Kelley mean to you?
It's exciting. It's really exciting. Now they can't just box out me, they have to box out Shae too, and she's flying a little bit everywhere. It helps me a lot, especially rebounding, but also the offensive, being a threat. We have great scorers, so all around, they have to focus on everybody, they can't just focus on me and Rachel, and that is just a big relief. I'm not going to see triple teams and not be able to pass it out!

How important is it to have a strong year for Rachel?
That's our plan. We don't want to end the season any other way. She earned it and she deserves it and we're going to send her out with a big bang into the NCAA tournament. I'm just excited for Rachel. It's her senior year and she's going to the league after this. So we've got to say 'bye' right.

Do you think this team has the ability to surprise this year?
I think we will surprise a lot of people. We have our goals set and our mindset set and we just want ... to start showing people what we're all about.

How has the team come along in terms of learning Stollings' new system?
We're just quick learners. Everybody is willing to change and accept their new roles, whatever the case might be. We always are soaking in the information and the teaching the coaches want us to play with it. It's fun to see, especially with young players. We have [freshman] Grace [Coughlin]-- she is always eager to listen and learn. It's just amazing to stand by and be like 'Wow.' We will be successful because everybody's working hard. Everyone's always extra early before practice, shooting and working with coaches after, coming in off days. It's amazing to see."

It looks like you've lost some weight this summer. What was the impetus behind that?
It's me ...I talked to the coaches, obviously and in order to take my game to the next level, I had to change some things. Honestly, I feel like I lost all the weight when I got here when I started working out differently with all the coaches here. It wasn't as much eating, but now I'm trying to be more specific on what exactly I'm eating and how I'm eating it. It's fun but it sucks at times. I love candy. I'm not gonna lie. I'm from Sweden, we have the best kind of candy in the world.