With the Big Ten women's basketball tournament two days away, Gophers basketball coach Dawn Plitzuweit, for the first time, talked about Mara Braun's season being over.

Braun stepped wrong during a morning shootaround prior to Minnesota's game against Eastern Illinois on Nov. 20, breaking the same bone in her right foot she had last season.

The Gophers have not yet officially listed Braun as being out for the season, but, with the regular season over, and a medical redshirt available, Braun will not return to action this season.

"It has been incredibly challenging for Mara," Plitzuweit said Monday. "It's hard to have the same injury and be out in back-to-back seasons. It's a credit to her character and her support system that she's done an amazing job of not making it about her."

Braun was the first player since Rachel Banham to lead the Gophers in scoring as a freshman. Last season Braun broke a foot in her right foot landing on an opponent after hitting a three that put the Gophers up seven against Illinois.

Without Braun the Gophers — in position for an NCAA bid when she was hurt — went 2-9 down the stretch of the regular season and into the Big Ten tournament. After two months recovering from surgery, Braun returned to play in the Gophers' first two WNIT games before tweaking the foot, ending her season.

She was leading the Gophers in scoring through five games this year before re-injuring the foot. As Braun said on Plitzuweit's coaches show recently, her hopes of playing professional after college fed into the decision to make sure the foot was completely healed before returning.

With a medical redshirt available, and with the regular season ticking away, it ultimately became clear Braun would not return. Plitzuweit said there was hope when Braun was first injured that she might return, but the team was not banking on it.

"At first there was a lot of anger," Braun said on Plitzuweit's show. "Doing it a second time wasn't ideal. I thought I had done everything I could."

At this point, Braun has almost become part of the coaching staff. After a recent game, Plitzuweit got to the locker room after doing postgame radio to find Braun addressing the team. "I'm just going to hand her the clipboard and tell her to go," Plitzuweit joked Monday.

Without Braun the Gophers enter the Big Ten tournament 20-10 overall and 8-10 in conference play, still with a chance at an NCAA berth.