Sophie Hart can play another year for her home-state program, if she chooses to.

Her current choice appears to be a resounding “Yes.”

Hart was granted an additional year of eligibility Tuesday by the NCAA, freeing the Farmington product up to play for the U in the 2025-26 campaign.

The center transferred to Minnesota after she played a semester and a half at North Carolina State. Hart played just five games for the Wolfpack as a sophomore prior to transferring. Hart is averaging 8.2 points and 4.2 rebounds this season as the Gophers starting center.

Gophers coach Dawn Plitzuweit revealed the news to Hart on Plitzuweit’s weekly coaches show.

“I’m grateful to the NCAA for approving a waiver for an additional year of eligibility, giving me the opportunity to continue my education and athletic collegiate career,” Hart said in a release. “I want to thank the Minnesota compliance office and the numerous staff from the athletic department that made this possible.”

— Jace Frederick

GOLF

North Oaks’ Capan gets into Phoenix Open

Just being a PGA Tour card holder doesn’t get you into every tournament on the calendar — far from it.

Tour rookie Frankie Capan III — the lone Minnesotan on Tour — isn’t in this week’s Pebble Beach Pro-Am, for instance, unsurprising given it’s an “elevated event” that features small fields, spots for which are largely earned from the previous season’s performance.

But the North Oaks native could have been on the outside looking in at next week’s event, the Waste Management Phoenix Open, had it not been for a sponsor’s exemption Waste Management announced this week.

Capan is currently 50th in the season-long FedEx Cup points list, but priority for getting into tournaments starts with those who earned their cards through play in last year’s PGA Tour play. Capan was a Korn Ferry Tour grad, and while he finished high on that list, which helps, those graduates in general are lower on the pecking order.

But Capan was a logical choice for one of the event’s five exemptions in Phoenix, given that his family lived there for parts of the year while he was growing up, and Capan won consecutive high school state championships in the city.

It’s still possible Capan could get into the event via his spot on the priority list, at which point the tournament could pass the exemption onto another player.

— Jace Frederick

WNBA

Griner signs with Dream after career in Phoenix

Brittney Griner plans to sign with the Atlanta Dream, a person familiar with the agreement told the Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because no announcement had been made. WNBA free agents can’t sign contracts until Feb. 1.

Griner has spent her entire 11-year career with Phoenix since getting drafted No. 1 in 2013. The 6-foot-9 center decided this offseason to test free agency for the first time. Griner will sign a one-year deal because a new collective bargaining agreement featuring potentially massive salary increases is expected to take effect in 2026.

The 34-year-old Griner missed the 2022 season when she was detained for nearly 10 months in Russia after authorities said a search of her luggage revealed vape cartridges containing oil derived from cannabis. She was freed in a prisoner swap when the United States released notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

Thomas heading to Mercury from Sun

The Phoenix Mercury were finalizing a deal to acquire Alyssa Thomas from the Connecticut Sun, a person familiar with the trade told the Associated Press.

The Sun also will send Ty Harris to Phoenix, while Connecticut will receive Natasha Cloud, Rebecca Allen and the No. 12 pick in this year’s draft, according to the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly about the deal.

NBA

NBA schedules 2025 draft for June 25-26

The NBA is using the two-night draft format again this year, announcing that the 2025 event will take place on June 25-26.

It’s the second consecutive year of the two-night process. Both nights will be at the Barclays Center, home of the Brooklyn Nets.

Duke freshman Cooper Flagg is widely expected to be a frontrunner for the No. 1 overall pick should he elect to enter the draft.

Skiing

Olsen leads Norwegian 1-2 in World GS

Alexander Steen Olsen led a Norwegian 1-2 finish ahead of Henrik Kristoffersen in a rain-affected men’s World Cup night giant slalom, while defending overall champion Marco Odermatt finished third.

Odermatt had won the last three giant slaloms, and 15 of the last 18, but the Olympic and world champion struggled in tough conditions to find his rhythm in the opening run and had finished 0.90 behind in 12th.

The Swiss star then posted the fifth-fastest time in the second run to gain nine spots in a performance that resembled his achievement from last year in Schladming, when he finished the opening run 0.98 seconds off the lead but still managed to win the race with a frenetic final run.

BOXING

Pauls’ announcement is show, not fight

Brothers Jake Paul and Logan Paul made social media announcements Tuesday that suggested they have a show or fight coming to HBO Max.

Calling it the “moment you’ve waited a decade for,” the posts featured a head-to-head shot of the brothers with a March 27 date and the HBO Max logo. Further details were not included in the posts.

ESPN reported on anonymous sources that it will be a reality series rather than a boxing match.

BRIEFLY

NBA >> Retired swingman Andre Iguodala will become just the seventh player to have his number retired by the Golden State Warriors next month.

SOCCER >> Brazilian striker Neymar has agreed to return to Santos nearly 12 years after he left the Brazilian team.

— From news services