University of Minnesota Athletics
2024-25 Women's Basketball Roster
Jersey Number 10
Mara Braun
- Class:
- Junior
- Position:
- G
- Height:
- 6-0
- High School:
- Wayzata High School
- Hometown:
- Wayzata, Minn.
Bio
2024-25: JUNIOR SEASON
Named to the Academic All-Big Ten Team... Recognized to the Ann Meyers-Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year Award watch list… Posted a season-high 21 points against Vermont (Nov. 8)… Recorded a career- and team-high eight steals against the Catamounts, becoming the first Gopher to record eight steals in a game since 1994… Started Minnesota’s first five games, scoring in double digits in four… Was Minnesota’s leading scorer to start the season, averaging 13.6 points per game through the first five games.
2023-24: SOPHOMORE SEASON
Named All-Big Ten Honorable Mention by both the coaches and the media despite playing in just 20 games (injury)...Led the team in points per game (17.0) despite missing games to injury...Was named to Big Ten's weekly honor roll twice (Nov. 13, Dec. 11)... Named to the All-Big Ten Preseason Team by the conference's coaches... Earned a spot on the Cheryl Miller Preseason Watch List and the top 10 mid-season list... Was second in the nation in free throw percentage at 94.8 percent (55-of-58)... Scored 14 of her 17 against Michigan in the 1st half, the fourth time she's scored 14+ in the first half during the 2023-24 season... Connected on a career high six threes against Grambling, scoring 26 points in just 24 minutes on the floor... Had a streak of over 137 minutes on the floor without a turnover before committing one against Purdue... Missed her first free throw of the season against Purdue, snapping her program record 37 straight free throws without a miss, which went down as the fifth-longest streak in Big Ten history and the longest streak since 2018... Hit a game-tying shot with 13 seconds left against Purdue and then sealed the victory with a steal as time expired... Erupted for 14 points in the two overtime periods against Drake, finishing with a season high 33 points... Scored 23 in the first half against Chicago State, finished with 25 while adding five boards and four assists.
BRAUN WITH TEAM USA (2023)
Made her Team USA debut at the FIBA U21 3x3 Nations League in Handan, China, on June 28, 2023... Helped Team USA win the Asia-Pacific conference title, winning five of the six stops during the six days of competitions, earning a berth into the 2023 FIBA U23 Nations League Final in Mongolia in September of 2023... In 13 games Braun played in Handan, the United States finished 12-1... With Team USA in Handan Braun scored 66 points in 13 games, highlighted by a 17-point performance during the penultimate tournament which was the third-most by any individual during Stop 5... Went on to win the U23 FIBA 3x3 Nations League Final in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, finishing with an undefeated record of 6-0... Was the co-leader in the championship game, scoring six of the team's 19 points in the 19-18 win over China... On top of being the first United States team, men or women, to win the Nations League Final Braun's squad also became the first women's U21 team to win the event.
2022-23: FRESHMAN SEASON
Named to the Big Ten's All-Freshman Team... Played in 29 of the Gophers 30 games during her first college season, starting in 28... Led the team in scoring as a true freshman, averaging 15.6 points per game... Also averaged 2.6 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game while shooting 36.7 percent from the floor, 34.9 percent from three and 87.5 percent from the free throw line... Led the team in threes made (65) and attempts (186) while also leading in free throws made (84) and was second on the team in steals (44)... Was the first true freshman to lead the Gophers in scoring (15.6 ppg) since Rachel Banham in 2011-12 (16.1 ppg)... Averaged 13.9 points, 2.6 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game during Big Ten play... In her college debut against Western Illinois (11/7) she scored the third-most points by a freshman in their debut in school history (21), scoring her first points 5:08 into the game... With 1.7 seconds on the clock she hit a buzzer-beating three against Lehigh (11/13) to win 101-99 and finished with a season-high 34 points and had four steals along with five threes... Dropped 16 points against Virginia in the fourth quarter, finished with 24 points overall... Dominated against Wake Forest, becoming the fourth freshman since 2009-10 to score 27+ points, 5+ 3FGM, 3+ steals and 1+ blocks... In her Big Ten debut against Penn State (12/3) she scored 26 points and handed out six assists while snagging three steals and hit 11-of-11 from the free throw line in the 2OT win... Dished out a career high eight assists while scoring 14 against Kentucky (12/7)... Scored all 10 of her points against No. 16/17 Maryland (12/30) in the second quarter... Connected on three triples at then-No. 13/12 Ohio State (2/8)... Dished the ball to Isabelle Gradwell for the game-winning three against Nebraska (2/15) and added her Big Ten season high 28 points on 9-of-13 shooting while adding seven rebounds and zero turnovers in 33 minutes... Led the Gophers with 17 points, 11 in the fourth, against Purdue (2/26) and also hit the final go-ahead free throws in the fourth quarter where she finished 6-of-6... Scored the most points in a postseason debut by a freshman in program history with 25 against Penn State (3/1)... Her 25 points in the Big Ten Tournament tied Rachel Banham for the second most points in any Big Ten Tournament game by a freshman (Record is Gadiva Hubbard with 28)... Finished second in the Big Ten in points per game among freshmen (15.6)... Finished with the third-most minutes per game by a freshman in Minnesota history (32.8)... Finished tied for the fifth-most points by a freshman in Minnesota history (453)... Her 15.6 poitns per game is the fourth best in a single season in school history... Finished with the fourth-most field goals attempted by a freshman in Minnesota history (414)... Finished with the third-most threes made by a freshman in a single season at Minnesota (65)... Ended with the third-most threes attempted by a freshman in school history (186)... Her 87.5 percent from the free throw line is a freshman single-season record.
HIGH SCHOOL
A four-star recruit, the No. 28 player overall in the country and the No. 8 point guard according to ESPN ... Averaged 20.5 points per game during her senior season... Averaged 18.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 3.5 steals per game in high school while shooting 43.6 percent from the floor and 40.7 percent from three... A three-time All-State selection as a sophomore and junior and senior... A 1,000 point scorer for Wayzata High School... A two-sport athlete, making the state track and field meet in triple jump three different times... Played for North Tartan AAU, winning the State AAU MVP in 2021 and being named to the All-Tournament team at Nike Nationals in 2021... Won a State Championship with North Tartan AAU in 2021... Four-time All-Lake Conference player along with All-Metro... Named to the 2022 Jersey Mike's Naismith High School Trophy Underclassmen Girls Watch List... Chose Minnesota over Arizona State, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan and Oregon State.
PERSONAL
Daughter of Chris and Ramona Braun who both went to Bemidji State... Mom played volleyball at Bemidji State while Dad played basketball... Has one sibling, Markus... Outside interests include volunteering at Club Unified and Special Olympics Minnesota.
SHOP HERE: MARA BRAUN JERSEY
Named to the Academic All-Big Ten Team... Recognized to the Ann Meyers-Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year Award watch list… Posted a season-high 21 points against Vermont (Nov. 8)… Recorded a career- and team-high eight steals against the Catamounts, becoming the first Gopher to record eight steals in a game since 1994… Started Minnesota’s first five games, scoring in double digits in four… Was Minnesota’s leading scorer to start the season, averaging 13.6 points per game through the first five games.
2023-24: SOPHOMORE SEASON
Named All-Big Ten Honorable Mention by both the coaches and the media despite playing in just 20 games (injury)...Led the team in points per game (17.0) despite missing games to injury...Was named to Big Ten's weekly honor roll twice (Nov. 13, Dec. 11)... Named to the All-Big Ten Preseason Team by the conference's coaches... Earned a spot on the Cheryl Miller Preseason Watch List and the top 10 mid-season list... Was second in the nation in free throw percentage at 94.8 percent (55-of-58)... Scored 14 of her 17 against Michigan in the 1st half, the fourth time she's scored 14+ in the first half during the 2023-24 season... Connected on a career high six threes against Grambling, scoring 26 points in just 24 minutes on the floor... Had a streak of over 137 minutes on the floor without a turnover before committing one against Purdue... Missed her first free throw of the season against Purdue, snapping her program record 37 straight free throws without a miss, which went down as the fifth-longest streak in Big Ten history and the longest streak since 2018... Hit a game-tying shot with 13 seconds left against Purdue and then sealed the victory with a steal as time expired... Erupted for 14 points in the two overtime periods against Drake, finishing with a season high 33 points... Scored 23 in the first half against Chicago State, finished with 25 while adding five boards and four assists.
BRAUN WITH TEAM USA (2023)
Made her Team USA debut at the FIBA U21 3x3 Nations League in Handan, China, on June 28, 2023... Helped Team USA win the Asia-Pacific conference title, winning five of the six stops during the six days of competitions, earning a berth into the 2023 FIBA U23 Nations League Final in Mongolia in September of 2023... In 13 games Braun played in Handan, the United States finished 12-1... With Team USA in Handan Braun scored 66 points in 13 games, highlighted by a 17-point performance during the penultimate tournament which was the third-most by any individual during Stop 5... Went on to win the U23 FIBA 3x3 Nations League Final in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, finishing with an undefeated record of 6-0... Was the co-leader in the championship game, scoring six of the team's 19 points in the 19-18 win over China... On top of being the first United States team, men or women, to win the Nations League Final Braun's squad also became the first women's U21 team to win the event.
2022-23: FRESHMAN SEASON
Named to the Big Ten's All-Freshman Team... Played in 29 of the Gophers 30 games during her first college season, starting in 28... Led the team in scoring as a true freshman, averaging 15.6 points per game... Also averaged 2.6 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game while shooting 36.7 percent from the floor, 34.9 percent from three and 87.5 percent from the free throw line... Led the team in threes made (65) and attempts (186) while also leading in free throws made (84) and was second on the team in steals (44)... Was the first true freshman to lead the Gophers in scoring (15.6 ppg) since Rachel Banham in 2011-12 (16.1 ppg)... Averaged 13.9 points, 2.6 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game during Big Ten play... In her college debut against Western Illinois (11/7) she scored the third-most points by a freshman in their debut in school history (21), scoring her first points 5:08 into the game... With 1.7 seconds on the clock she hit a buzzer-beating three against Lehigh (11/13) to win 101-99 and finished with a season-high 34 points and had four steals along with five threes... Dropped 16 points against Virginia in the fourth quarter, finished with 24 points overall... Dominated against Wake Forest, becoming the fourth freshman since 2009-10 to score 27+ points, 5+ 3FGM, 3+ steals and 1+ blocks... In her Big Ten debut against Penn State (12/3) she scored 26 points and handed out six assists while snagging three steals and hit 11-of-11 from the free throw line in the 2OT win... Dished out a career high eight assists while scoring 14 against Kentucky (12/7)... Scored all 10 of her points against No. 16/17 Maryland (12/30) in the second quarter... Connected on three triples at then-No. 13/12 Ohio State (2/8)... Dished the ball to Isabelle Gradwell for the game-winning three against Nebraska (2/15) and added her Big Ten season high 28 points on 9-of-13 shooting while adding seven rebounds and zero turnovers in 33 minutes... Led the Gophers with 17 points, 11 in the fourth, against Purdue (2/26) and also hit the final go-ahead free throws in the fourth quarter where she finished 6-of-6... Scored the most points in a postseason debut by a freshman in program history with 25 against Penn State (3/1)... Her 25 points in the Big Ten Tournament tied Rachel Banham for the second most points in any Big Ten Tournament game by a freshman (Record is Gadiva Hubbard with 28)... Finished second in the Big Ten in points per game among freshmen (15.6)... Finished with the third-most minutes per game by a freshman in Minnesota history (32.8)... Finished tied for the fifth-most points by a freshman in Minnesota history (453)... Her 15.6 poitns per game is the fourth best in a single season in school history... Finished with the fourth-most field goals attempted by a freshman in Minnesota history (414)... Finished with the third-most threes made by a freshman in a single season at Minnesota (65)... Ended with the third-most threes attempted by a freshman in school history (186)... Her 87.5 percent from the free throw line is a freshman single-season record.
HIGH SCHOOL
A four-star recruit, the No. 28 player overall in the country and the No. 8 point guard according to ESPN ... Averaged 20.5 points per game during her senior season... Averaged 18.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 3.5 steals per game in high school while shooting 43.6 percent from the floor and 40.7 percent from three... A three-time All-State selection as a sophomore and junior and senior... A 1,000 point scorer for Wayzata High School... A two-sport athlete, making the state track and field meet in triple jump three different times... Played for North Tartan AAU, winning the State AAU MVP in 2021 and being named to the All-Tournament team at Nike Nationals in 2021... Won a State Championship with North Tartan AAU in 2021... Four-time All-Lake Conference player along with All-Metro... Named to the 2022 Jersey Mike's Naismith High School Trophy Underclassmen Girls Watch List... Chose Minnesota over Arizona State, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan and Oregon State.
PERSONAL
Daughter of Chris and Ramona Braun who both went to Bemidji State... Mom played volleyball at Bemidji State while Dad played basketball... Has one sibling, Markus... Outside interests include volunteering at Club Unified and Special Olympics Minnesota.
SHOP HERE: MARA BRAUN JERSEY
Gophers Win Season Opener 2-1
Thursday, August 15
