The Gophers' golden run to the Women's Final Four, 18 years later

Will she play?

For nearly six weeks in the spring of 2004, that was the question. Lindsay Whalen's right hand was in a cast, where two broken bones were mending. In a February loss at Ohio State, the Gophers star guard had charged into the lane after a rebound, collided with one Buckeyes player, gone over the back of another, landing on that precious shooting hand.

Eighteen years later, the women's Final Four scheduled for Minneapolis evokes memories of that 2004 Gophers run. But first, the question:

Will she play?

This Gophers women's basketball team had expectations, having gone to the NCAA Sweet 16 the year before, with virtually everybody back. In the team's first meeting in early September 2003, Whalen had raised her hand, stood and announced she wanted to go to the Final Four. "That wasn't me setting the goal,'' coach Pam Borton said. "It was our leader.''

Borton insists — and members of the team agree — that Whalen crashing to the floor in February was the biggest reason the Gophers reached the Final Four in April. It forced Janel McCarville to get even better, Kadidja Andersson to score more, Shannon Bolden (now Nelson) to add some offense to her shut-down defense, point guard Shannon Schonrock (now Swanson) to take more charge of the offense, freshman Kelly Roysland (now Curry) to be thrust into the starting lineup, the bench to contribute more.

Everyone on that team got better as Whalen healed.

But: Will she play?

The Gophers were 3-4 down the stretch of the season without Whalen, falling to a No. 7 seed. As the tournament opener approached — with the Gophers set to host the first two rounds — it looked like Whalen would play, but how well?

With a soft cast on her right hand, with just two practices, she took the floor for a game with UCLA in front of 12,357 fans.

And scored 31 points in a a 92-81 victory. It was the first of four, a streak that included victories over second-seeded Kansas State, third-seeded Boston College and Duke, the tournament's top seed, looking for a third straight Final Four, featuring Associated Press Player of the Year Alana Beard.

With the soft cast making jump shots difficult, Whalen attacked the rim. With the game on the line she scored 14 points in the final six minutes.

With the game tied Whalen dribbled into the paint, did a jump-step to the left and scored on a reverse layup with 74 seconds left.

Reactions?

Whalen, frankly was kind of surprised it even went in. But it did. "It was, 'I'm back,' " Whalen said. "We got this.''

"She got going and we followed,'' Andersson said. "Honestly, it felt like magic.''

"She carried us,'' McCarville said. "She missed all those games? Six weeks? Broken hand? In that moment, we knew. That was the start of the myth.''

That run to the Final Four 18 years ago sometimes feels that way to some of the players. A myth. Andersson and McCarville had lunch the other day in Stockholm, Sweden, where Andersson grew up and McCarville now coaches. Andersson mentioned she has trouble remembering specifics of the tournament but can't forget the emotion.

Not McCarville. "It's burned into my brain," she said. "I was rattling off every game to her, every play, everything the coaches said, every big possession. I mean, I felt like Rain Man.''

The Gophers were a team filled with players from Minnesota, including three starters. McCarville is from Wisconsin. Of the top nine scorers, seven were from Minnesota, including Jamie Broback, Liz Podominick and Christina Collison.

Maybe that's why the team was so close. Nelson, the women's coach at Northland Community College in Thief River Falls, remembers the biggest motivation to keep winning was so the team could stay together another game, another weekend.

The Gophers were constructed to win. Two big-time scorers in Whalen and McCarville. A terrific defense led by Bolden, Andersson and Schonrock, now Shannon Swanson, the community education director for Blue Earth Schools. It was a team that loved to play physically and relished the opportunity to bully a team that didn't.

With Whalen back they had a swagger.

"That was as fun a time as I've had in my life,'' said Whalen, who counts two Olympic gold medals and four WNBA title rings on her résumé and now serves as the Gophers coach herself. "It was a turning point. It changed my life. I don't know if I'm sitting here as the head coach if we don't have that success, go to the Final Four. I'm lucky to have competed for a gold medal, won WNBA championships, but that was the first time."

This is a common theme. Andersson remembers the noise of the crowd in New Orleans Arena prior to the national semifinal against Connecticut, thinking she would never experience something like this again.

"It shaped all of our lives,'' said Borton, who is now the owner of her own leadership consulting firm. "And it continues to shape our lives today."

Whalen averaged 19.8 points, 7.8 assists and 5.4 rebounds in the five NCAA tournament games. McCarville 19.4 points, 4.4 assists and 15 rebounds. "I was a rebounding machine that month,'' she said. Andersson and Schonrock scored in double figures twice, Bolden three times.

Two days after beating UCLA, in front of a frenzied 13,425 at Williams, the Gophers destroyed second-seeded Kansas State 80-61. McCarville had 15 points and 18 rebounds, pushing around Kansas State first-team all-America center Nicole Ohlde. Schonrock scored 14 points, all in the first 15 minutes, and the Gophers outscored the Wildcats 43-17 in the first half.

In the regional in Norfolk, Va., with McCarville going for 25 and 15 and Bolden holding BC's best player, Amber Jacobs, to 1-for-8 shooting the Gophers beat Boston College — where Borton had been an assistant before coming to Minnesota — 76-63.

And then, Duke.

So many memorable moments. McCarville 20 and 18, Whalen 27 points, Andersson 17, Bolden 10. Bolden limiting Beard to 4-for-14 shooting. The Gophers holding the fort in the second half while McCarville sat with four fouls.

And then:

Bolden's three with the score tied at 59-59.

McCarville's sick, no-look, back-door bounce pass to Whalen for a six-point lead with 2:20 left.

With Minnesota up two, out of a time out with 1:02 left, Whalen in-bounded the ball to Bolden and got it back. She dribbled once behind her back as she got up to speed. End to end. McCarville always remembered how fast Whalen was with the ball. Without it? Not so much. "Maybe it was the hockey she played as a kid,'' McCarville said.

As Whalen reached the paint, with Lindsey Harding guarding her, Whalen spun, then scored off the glass with 56.2 seconds left.

After the Gophers won 82-75 against the blueblood Blue Devils they celebrated at halfcourt. McCarville tried to douse Borton with Gatorade, was told she couldn't do it on the court, and proceeded to drag Borton off of it so she could.

"I remember everything," McCarville said. "I remember Alana crying at the end. I feel bad talking about it. She never got her championship. But in the moment, I wanted to see it. I liked it. We did that. Everyone overlooked us, thought Duke would take it."

Whalen, with a verbal shrug: "Somebody's got to win, somebody's got to lose. … We were more prepared. We were better."

And then it ended, 67-58 to Connecticut in the national semifinal. All game it seemed the Gophers were chasing the Diana Taurasi-led Huskies.

Down nine, the Gophers rallied to within three with 5:50 left. The Gophers got four straight stops, but couldn't score. Then, with 3:26 left, Ann Strother hit a three for UConn.

"That was the shot," Whalen said. "The backbreaker. The dagger."

And a very difficult memory for Borton. For one possession, to give UConn a different look, she changed defense, to a 2-3 zone, moments before Strother's three. "I can still see that play in my mind," she said.

Nearly two decades later, Curry is an assistant for Whalen at the U, Nelson is coaching up north, McCarville in Sweden.

Everyone can appreciate what that spring meant to them.

"Now you realize how rare it was to do what we did,'' Swanson said. "Now, more than ever, I'm super grateful for it."

Said Curry: "Sometimes you don't realize the magnitude of that experience until you're older.''

Everyone's a little older now. But the memories remain.

"Pride, exhilaration, every emotion you can think of,'' Borton said. "Happy tears, the hard work. Just special."