Bianca Blanaru, a native of Timisoara, Romania, who has played each of the past two seasons at Washington State University, will transfer to join the UGA women’s basketball team, head coach Joni Taylor announced on Thursday.
 
 
Blanaru will sit out the 2016-17 season due to NCAA transfer rules and will have two years of eligibility remaining at the beginning of the 2017-18 campaign.
 
 
“Bianca is someone who will bring a lot of experience to our roster,” Taylor said. “She has a huge advantage in that she can take this year to learn our system, develop and become the best player she can be in practice every day. She has the skill, size and versatility to be a difference maker in the post for us. We look forward to her joining us, and I’m excited to watch her career over the next few years.”
 
 
The 6-foot-5 post player comes to Georgia from Washington State University, where she played in 30 games last season. She was third on the team in blocked shots with 22 during her sophomore campaign. That came after she set the Washington State record for a freshman with five blocked shots in a single game against Idaho State during the 2014-15 season.
 
 
Blanaru’s career started in Romania, where she represented her country on the Under-18 National Team at the 2012 European Championships and was a member of the Under-20 National Team in 2013. She played for the BCM Timisoara club team in Romania and participated in the 2012 FIBA 3×3 World Championships in Spain.
 
 
Blanaru joins incoming freshmen Stephanie Paul and Kortney Eisenman, as well as Portugal native and junior college transfer Simone Costa in the Lady Bulldogs’ 2016 signing class. She is the team’s second signee of the spring recruiting period, which runs from April 13-May 18.
 
 
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