Lindsay Whalen will be stepping down as head coach of the University of Minnesota women’s basketball program after five seasons coaching the Gophers, the University announced Thursday.

Whalen will be a special assistant to the athletic director until April 12, 2025.

“I want to thank Mark [Coyle] and the University for giving me the opportunity to lead this program five years ago,” Whalen said in a press release Thursday. “We did things the right way and created a lot of memories, but now is the right time for me to step aside and return to being a proud alum. I look forward to supporting and cheering on the next head coach.”

The Gophers’ 2022-23 season concluded Wednesday when they lost to Penn State in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament at the Target Center.

In Whalen’s five seasons, the Gophers went 71-76 overall, and 32-58 in Big Ten play. She leaves behind a young roster with plenty of talent, headlined by their 2023 recruiting class, which ranked best in program history.

Freshman guard Mara Braun led the team in scoring, averaging 15.7 points per game. In addition, freshman point guard Amaya Battle broke the freshman single-season assists record (133). The class of 2023-24 included players like Dominika Paurová, North Carolina State transfer Sophie Hart and Maple Grove local Kennedy Klick.

Whalen had a serious impact on Minnesota basketball when she was a player, having led the Gophers to their first Final Four in 2004 as a player and putting together a Hall-Fame WNBA career for the Minnesota Lynx. She was even inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 2022.

The search for the 13th head coach in Gophers women’s basketball program history is expected to begin immediately.

“I want to hire somebody that fits our culture and what I mean by that is, we talk all the time about, again, doing it right — Minnesota matters,” said University of Minnesota Athletic Director Mark Coyle. “I want somebody who understands and will do things the right way … most importantly provide a first class experience to our student athletes.”