New U women’s basketball center returns home with big goals
Sophie Hart's 6-5 frame towered over a group of girls at last week's Gophers women's basketball youth camp inside the Athletes Village.
Hart's physical presence demanded their attention. Her personality and ability to connect with players stood out even more to first-year Gophers coach Dawn Plitzuweit.
"The energy was incredible," Plitzuweit said. "In our program we really believe every moment matters. Everything you do stacks upon itself. What you do in one area will carry over and help us on the basketball court as well."
Hart's energy and leadership has also been apparent with her teammates this summer. After sitting out as a North Carolina State transfer last season, the Farmington native is confident she can make an impact as a junior center under Plitzuweit.
"I want to be a dominant post player," Hart said. "I want to help my team win, whatever my role might be doing that."
The Gophers, who finished with an 11-19 record last season, could've used another inside scoring and defensive presence in Lindsay Whalen's final year, but Hart was ineligible to play after leaving N.C. State during the season.
After playing sparingly in five games with the Wolf Pack last November, Hart entered the transfer portal to find a better opportunity knowing she would have to sit out. Coming back to her home state to play for Minnesota felt like the best fit. But Hart had to rethink that decision after Whalen resigned in March.
It wasn't until the Gophers announced Plitzuweit's hire that Hart felt comfortable remaining at the U. She was familiar with Plitzuweit, who was coaching West Virginia last year when the Mountaineers recruited Hart in the transfer portal.
"I was kind of on the edge because you don't know who you're going to get," Hart said about the coaching search. "Sometimes the universe puts people in places at the right time. It just kind of felt right."
Landing Hart out of high school would've been a big deal for the Gophers. She was ranked as the 40th-best prospect nationally in the 2021 class. She led Farmington to a school-best 29-2 record and a berth in the Class 4A state championship against Hopkins before that game was canceled due to COVID-19.
Hart had more than 20 scholarship offers, including from the Gophers but signed to play for one of the top programs in the ACC. N.C. State attracted Hart because of a post-oriented offense. That's something she hopes Plitzuweit's system can bring to the Gophers.
West Virginia's top four scorers were guards last season. But at South Dakota, Plitzuweit previously developed Rogers native Hannah Sjerven into an all-conference center. A two-time Summit League Defensive Player of the Year, Sjerven was the No. 28 pick in the 2022 WNBA draft by the Lynx.
"I consider myself a true post and back-to-basket player," Hart said. "If you look back at South Dakota, they had Hannah. And so, you could watch that film and see how they used her down low."
As a freshman at N.C. State two years ago, Hart played in 20 games, including in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Gophers return sophomore forward Mallory Heyer, who started all 30 games last season. But the rest of the frontcourt consists of freshmen, including Wisconsin native Ayianna Johnson, who Hart is mentoring this summer.
"Right now, I'm trying to help AJ working on post skills and post defense," Hart said. "Just trying to bring her along as best I can, providing my input and advice when needed."
From campers to teammates looking up to Hart, the Gophers got a glimpse this summer that her leadership could be as big as the post presence she brings to the Big Ten.
