Athletes Unlimited has confirmed the 44-player roster for its inaugural basketball season, with Kelsey Mitchell, Lexie Brown and Mercedes Russell among the final additions. The season is set to tip off Jan. 26 in Las Vegas.

Mitchell, the Indiana Fever’s leading scorer last season, earned a spot on the All-Rookie Team after being selected No. 2 overall in the 2018 WNBA Draft. Since then, she’s continued to elevate her game, finishing among the WNBA’s top-10 scorers each of the last two seasons. Before turning pro, the guard had a prolific career at Ohio State, graduating with the second-highest points (3,402) and most 3-pointers made (497) in NCAA history.

“I am honored and thrilled to be part of Athletes Unlimited’s inaugural basketball season,” Mitchell said. “AU offers women another opportunity to play professional basketball in the United States and will provide national television exposure that will help us grow the game we love to play.”

Brown and Russell join the league with a combined three WNBA titles in the last four years. Brown is a member of the 2021 WNBA champion Chicago Sky, while Russell won championships with the Seattle Storm in 2018 and 2020. AU players Essence Carson, Natasha Cloud and Jantel Lavender have also won WNBA championships.

“Athletes Unlimited is another great stage to showcase professional women’s basketball here in the United States and I cannot wait to compete both with and against so many talented players on a weekly basis during our inaugural season in Las Vegas starting January 26,” Brown said.

Imani McGee-Stafford announced her inclusion on the roster over the weekend. The 27-year-old center played four seasons in the WNBA from 2016-19 before taking the last two years off to attend law school.

The 31 players added to the roster on Tuesday join 10 who were previously announced, notably Courtney Williams and WNBA veterans Mikiah Herbert Harrigan and Carson.

Four players earned spots through the open tryouts in Atlanta in December. Becca Wann-Taylor will get an opportunity out of the University of Richmond, where she was a two-sport athlete in basketball and soccer. Joining her are Taj Cole, Briahanna Jackson and Takola Larry.

“We are very pleased with the diverse and dynamic Athletes Unlimited Basketball roster for our inaugural season,” said AU Director of Basketball Kristen Miles. “True to our intentions from the beginning, we are providing an additional opportunity for women to play professional basketball in the U.S., whether on a current roster or not. A whole new breed of women’s pro hoops is soon to be unleashed on Las Vegas, and these incredible athletes will surely make for a historic first season that can’t be missed.”

AU players Lavender and Tianna Hawkins will also serve on the player executive committee as the fourth and fifth members alongside Cloud, Sydney Colson and Ty Young.

The four-week basketball season runs from Jan. 26 to Feb. 26.

Full roster

• Ciara Andrews, G
• Antoinette Bannister, G/F
• Kalani Brown, C
• Lexie Brown, G
• Kirby Burkholder, G
• Marjorie Butler, G
• DiJonai Carrington, G/F
• Essence Carson, G
• Brittany Carter, G/F
• Natasha Cloud, G
• Taj Cole, G
• Sydney Colson, G
• Drew Edelman, F
• Nikki Greene, C
• Mikiah Herbert Harrigan, F
• Rebecca Harris, G
• Isabelle Harrison, F
• Tianna Hawkins, F
• Ariel Hearn, G
• Grace Hunter, G
• Briahanna Jackson, G
• Meme Jackson, G/F
• Tyce Knox, G
• Jessica Kuster, F
• Takoia Larry, F
• Jantel Lavender, F
• Akela Maize, C
• Lauren Manis, F
• Danielle L. McCray, G/F
• Danielle M. McCray, F
• Imani McGee-Stafford
• Laurin Mincy, G
• Kelsey Mitchell, G
• Chelsea Phillips, F
• Toccara Ross, F
• Tina Roy, G
• Mercedes Russell, C
• Odyssey Sims, G
• Antoinette Thompson, G
• Destinee Walker, G
• Becca Wann-Tayor, G/F
• Courtney Williams, G
• Dominique Wilson, G
• Ty Young, G/F

No. 3 South Carolina basketball suffered a blow this week, as top transfer Ta'Niya Latson exited the Gamecocks' 96-55 win over Providence with a lower leg injury on Sunday.

"She's smiling," South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said of Latson immediately following the game, offering an optimistic injury update. "She got treatment all through the second half."

The star senior guard, who turned 22 years old last Friday, joined South Carolina after leading Division I in scoring with Florida State last season.

This year, Latson's 16.9 points per game trails only sophomore forward Joyce Edwards's 21.4-point average on the Gamecocks' scoresheet.

While the full extent to Latson's injury and her potential time off the court is still unknown, any absence exacerbates the team's injury woes, as South Carolina lost standout forward Chloe Kitts to a season-ending injury before the 2025/26 campaign tipped off — with the Gamecocks battling additional availability limits throughout their roster all month.

That said, with the recent returns of forward Madina Okot and guard Agot Makeer from concussion protocol, the Gamecock bench is significantly less sparse, with both returnees impacting Sunday's South Carolina victory with a double-double.

Even more, Staley's squad will see additional roster relief when 18-year-old French center Alicia Tournebize joins the team midseason.

How to watch South Carolina basketball this week

The No. 3 Gamecocks will open the new year by tipping off their SEC slate on Thursday, when South Carolina hosts unranked Alabama at 2 PM ET.

The clash with the Crimson Tide will air live on SEC+.

The world's tennis stars are preparing to open 2026 play in Australia this weekend, with top WTA and ATP leaders on Team USA gearing up to defend their United Cup title starting this Friday.

The two-time champion US enters as the No. 1 seed in the fourth edition of the hard-court tournament, bolstered by the return of world No. 3 Coco Gauff to lead Team USA's six-player United Cup contingent.

With each tournament bout consisting of one WTA singles match, one ATP singles clash, and one mixed-doubles competition, Gauff notably claimed a straight-sets victory over Polish phenom No. 2 Iga Świątek to secure the 2025 title for the US.

"I'm super excited," the 21-year-old star said prior to this year's United Cup. "I had such a good time in my first year playing with the team, and I'm looking forward to going back."

With the 2026 Australian Open beginning in less than two weeks, the United Cup pits 18 national teams against each other as players from both the women's and men's tours tune up for next year's Slams.

Fellow WTA Top-10 stars Świątek and Italy's No. 8 Jasmine Paolini will join Gauff on the 2026 United Cup court, while fan favorite No. 16 Naomi Osaka will feature for tournament debutant Japan.

Also battling for national pride will be two winners of last season's WTA awards, with 2025 Newcomer of the Year No. 18 Vicky Mboko joining Team Canada and 2025 Comeback Player of the Year No. 11 Belinda Bencic competing for Switzerland.

How to watch the 2026 United Cup

The 2026 United Cup runs January 2nd through 11th, with live coverage airing on the Tennis Channel.

The No. 3 Minnesota Frost are looking to skate up the PWHL table, as the reigning back-to-back champs hope to make up ground before the third-year league breaks for the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Eight games into the 2025/26 season, the Boston Fleet top the PWHL standings with 19 points, trailed by the No. 2 Toronto Sceptres with 14, while the No. 4 Montréal Victoire sit one point behind the Frost with 11.

"Our league is good. Every game is going to be close," Minnesota head coach Ken Klee said last week. "It's just about getting better and keep accumulating points."

With the league's original six teams largely off to a hot start, there's only a few weeks left before players hang up their PWHL jerseys for February's Winter Games.

Teams outside the current playoff chase are also making a statement, as New York Sirens forward Casey O'Brien scored her first pro goals to power the sixth-place squad past the No. 5 Seattle Torrent 4-3 on Sunday — becoming the first rookie to record a hat trick in PWHL history in the process.

"We've been putting in a lot of work in practice and video, focusing on the little things," O'Brien said postgame. "Tonight felt like the payoff."

How to watch this week's PWHL action

The puck drops on the final 2025 PWHL matches on Tuesday, when the No. 3 Minnesota Frost visit the No. 2 Toronto Sceptres at 7 PM ET, airing live on Prime.

Closing out the year on Wednesday, the No. 6 New York Sirens will host the No. 7 Vancouver Goldeneyes at 1 PM ET, with live coverage airing on MSG Network.

San Diego made roster waves this week, as the 2022 NWSL expansion team announced on Monday that founding goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan is leaving the franchise in a mutual contract termination.

Sheridan joined the Wave ahead of the club's inaugural year, making 87 appearances over four seasons while registering nine shutouts in the team's 2023 Shield-winning campaign.

"Kailen has been an integral part of this Club since day one," Wave sporting director Camille Ashton said in a Monday statement. "We thank her for the contributions to this Club and this city and wish her the best in the next chapter of her career."

While San Diego hunts for a new starting keeper, they pointed to the future by also announcing the signing of Florida State defender Mimi Van Zanten on Monday.

Van Zanten is fresh off her second NCAA championship in three seasons, building youth experience with the USWNT before joining the Jamaica senior women's national team.

"Her championship experience and ability to contribute on both sides of the ball make her a strong addition to the Wave," Ashton remarked about the 20-year-old.

Ultimately, while San Diego has long had an aggressive transfer market approach, the move away from their 2023 Shield-winning core raises questions about the future of the Wave roster.