When Wisconsin head coach Lisa Stone looks down her bench this season, she will have the comfort of knowing that all of her players will be back from last year, along with the addition of a couple of strong rookies. Not only did the Wisconsin women's basketball team not graduate any players, experienced senior guards Jolene Anderson and Janese Banks will be the returning captains on the squad.
Our team goals are to win the Big Ten Championship and play in the NCAA Tournament. It's definitely high expectations. No more bottom of the big ten, no more middle. We're being on top, that's what we want to accomplish,"" Banks said.
Wisconsin finished off the 2007 season with a winning record (23-13). The Badgers went 7-9 in Big Ten conference play and dominated the court in non-conference games, going 16-4. Along with the successful season, Wisconsin also brought home the runner-up trophy at the WNIT tournament.
The Badgers tied for fifth place last year in the Big Ten and was picked to finish second behind Ohio State this year in the preseason coaches poll.
""The fact that we've got a preseason ranking, it's an honor to be recognized on a national level by coaches and administrators. But it's preseason,"" Stone said. ""For us to accomplish what we want to accomplish, we've got to stay focused and get better every day and hope that we will be standing there or better by the end of the year.""
Exhibition play will commence this week as St. Norbert and UW-Stout visit the Kohl Center. St. Norbert will have its first meeting in women's basketball history with the Badgers on Thursday night, and Stout will test its team's strength against UW on Sunday afternoon.
St. Norbert has seven returning letter winners and three returning starters from last season. Junior guard Morgan Strasser is the only returning player who averaged double-figure scoring with 12.8 points per game.
UW-Stout has four returning starters to its line-up as the Blue Devils are expected to have the tools to make another strong run this season. UW-Stout won its second consecutive Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) title and made its second consecutive NCAA Division III Sweet 16 appearance last season.
On the other hand, Wisconsin has Anderson. She was named the preseason Big Ten Player of the Year last week and is expected to lead the Badgers statistically. Anderson was also awarded first-team All-Big Ten honors at the end of the 2007 season, was second team All-Big Ten in 2006 and was named the Big Ten's Freshman of the Year in 2005.
Anderson led Wisconsin with an average of 19.8 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. She also had a team-high 90 steals throughout last season.
Banks, along with sophomore point guard Rae Lin D'Alie, will be filling the other two guard positions. Senior forward Danielle Ward, junior forward Caitlin Gibson and sophomore forward Mariah Dunham are expected to see a lot of action in the post.
A very deep bench will be ready upon Stone's demands. Each of the players has something unique to bring to the floor, ensuring Wisconsin's ability to be ready for any situation it has to deal with.
One of Wisconsin's top recruits, freshman guard/forward Lin Zastrow, was named 2007 AP Player of the Year and Wisconsin's Miss Basketball. During her senior year of high school, Zastrow received first-team All State honors, averaged over 20 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists and 3.1 steals per game.
Two rookies from Minnesota will also be new additions to Wisconsin. Tara Steinbauer, who was named the top ranked power forward in Minnesota by the 2006-'07 Minnesota High School Girl's Basketball Sports guide, also averaged 20 points and 8 rebounds per game her senior year. Alyssa Karel, the 5'7' freshman guard, found ways to score an average of 19.2 points per game despite her height disadvantage.
Senior leadership will play a huge factor in Wisconsin's ability to accomplish team goals. With seniors Anderson, Banks, Ward and forward Ivana Mijalcevic in command, Coach Stone said she feels confident that her team could have a great season. Younger players feel the same way Stone does.
""[The seniors] embraced this year already. You can just tell by the look in their eyes that they're ready to go, and that gets everybody fired up,"" said D'Alie. ""We're practicing better than we've ever practiced. They're looking to lead this team. It's their last year; it is win or go home for them. They're really taking on a great role. It's bringing out the best in everybody.
