rewrite this content and keep HTML tags
PITTSBURGH — Pitt Panthers women’s basketball has one of their starts preparing for their professional career at the highest level.
Panthers graduate student center Khadija Faye declared for the 2025 WNBA Draft in a press release through the program.
“Thank you to the University of Pittsburgh with all my heart,” Faye said in a press release. “I came to this wonderful city not knowing what to expect. Little did I know, the amazing people, staff, teammates and friends I would be surrounded with. The journey has been remarkable and full of achievements. I have cherished every step of this journey. I will forever be grateful to Chancellor Joan Gabel, Director of Athletics Allen Greene, Coach Tory Verdi and staff, as well as the entire athletics support team. I am excited for the next chapter and will be officially declaring for the 2025 WNBA Draft.”
Faye had an incredible season and earned All-ACC First Team honors for her performances.
She was just the third Pitt player to earn All-ACC First Team honors, joining forward Liatu King last season and guard Briana Kiesel in the 2014-15 season.
Faye transferred from Texas for her fifth and final season of college basketball and showed the value of the transfer portal for the program this campaign.
She ranked amongst the best in the ACC in many categories, including second with 2.5 blocks per game, third with 19.2 points per game, fourth with 10.2 rebounds per game, No. 10 shooting 49.9% from the field and No. 14 shooting 71.5% from the foul line.
Faye scored 21 points or more in 17 games and in double digits in all but four of her 29 appearances this season.
She also finished with 19 double-doubles, the most for any ACC player, third most amongst Power 4 players and tied for ninth most in Division I.
Faye scored a career-high 31 points in the regular season finale for Pitt, a 79-63 road win over Wake Forest on March 2, that clinched a spot in the ACC Tournament.
She also helped the Panthers finish the regular season 4-4, after starting conference play with a 1-9 record, giving them a chance at postseason success.
Pitt head coach Tory Verdi, who makes it back-to-back seasons with All-ACC First Team honorees since joining the program, praised Faye for her play this campaign, especially after her double-double in a win over Clemson on Feb. 23 on Senior Day.
“Nothing surprises me and she’s doing it, getting double and triple-teamed,” Verdi said. “She has two, three people draped around her all day long and the fact that she continues to go out there and have a double-double, 21 [points] and 10 [rebounds] today.
“She’s one of the best players in the ACC,tThere’s no question about it and I think the work that she’s done shows she belongs and is going to have to have opportunities at the next level. Just super proud of what she’s been able to do and been in consistent in that regard as well.”
Faye played four years of collegiate basketball, with her first two seasons at Texas Tech and her past two at Texas, playing in 103 games and starting 58. She averaged 14.9 minutes, 5.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 0.9 blocks and 0.8 steals per game, respectively, while shooting 49.1% from the field and 70.0% from 3-point range in her career so far.
She started 15 fifteen of the 19 games she played as a freshman for the Red Raiders in the COVID-19 impacted 2020-21 season. She averaged 15.8 minutes, 5.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.1 blocks and 0.9 assists per game, respectively, as well as shooting 47.5% from the field and 50.0% from the foul line.
Faye started less games as a sophomore, just nine of 19 games she played in, but improved her production. She averaged career-highs of 18.1 minutes, 6.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. She also shot 42.9% from the floor and 66.7% from the foul line.
She would transfer to Texas as a junior ahead of the 2022-23 season. Unlike her past two seasons with Texas Tech, that saw her endure back-to-back losing seasons, she got to experience a great winning culture at Texas.
Faye played in 36 games and started 27 contests as a junior, both career-highs, leading the Longhorns to a regular season Big 12 Title and the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament.
She also averaged 14.9 minutes, 5.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, a career-high 1.0 steals, as well as 0.9 blocks per game, respectively, while making a career-high 54.3% of her shots from the floor and shooting 69.3% on free throws.
Faye helped Texas win the Big 12 Tournament and make the Elite Eight this past season, playing 29 games and starting seven of them. She averaged 12.2 minutes, 5.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 0.8 steals and 0.7 blocks per game, respectively, while shooting 50.5% from the floor and a career-high 78.4% from the foul line.
The WNBA Draft takes place on April 14, with training camp starting on April 27 and the regular season beginning on May 16.
Pitt has only had two ever WNBA Draft selections, with the Detroit Shock taking Shavonte Zellous with the 11th pick in the first round of the 2009 draft and the Tulsa Shock drafting Kiesel in the 13th pick of the second round in 2015.
Make sure you bookmark Inside the Panthers for the latest news, exclusive interviews, recruiting coverage, and more!
Follow Inside the Panthers on Twitter: @InsidePitt
