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Hoops kicks off year in Cleveland
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Also by Jonah Braun:
- UW tries to end home stand well (December 11, 2007)
- Balanced scoring attack leads Badgers over Falcons (December 10, 2007)
- Depth evident as entire roster sees action (December 5, 2007)
- Badgers to fight Panthers (December 4, 2007)
- UW nets hoops win (December 3, 2007)
Related Stories:
- Badgerball returns to Wisconsin to host Cleveland State (November 26, 2001)
- Badgers prepare for season-opener against Cougars (November 17, 2005)
- Badgers welcome familiar faces to Kohl Center (January 20, 2005)
- Stone's squad looks to improve (November 15, 2005)
- Preseason no trouble for Badgers (November 6, 2007)
by Jonah Braun
Friday, November 9, 2007
After a successful preseason, the UW women's basketball team
is ready to get the regular season started. Wisconsin blew out St. Norbert
College 96-29 and UW-Stout 98-60 in its two exhibition games. It will look to
carry that strong play into regular season action against the Cleveland State
Vikings Friday.
While the Vikings had a subpar season last year, they will
be riding the momentum from their victory over Ashland 78-42 last Tuesday on
their home court.
Playing on the road appears to be the biggest test Friday
for head coach Lisa Stone and the Badgers.
"It's a challenge because it's the first of many road games
we have here in November," Stone said. "We'll find out what we're made of when
we take our game on the road and we'll see what our team and especially, what
our freshmen can do."
The presence of the freshmen was particularly noticeable in
the team’s exhibition games. Point guard Alyssa Karel scored 27 total points
during Wisconsin’s short preseason.
After a nerve-racking debut, Karel is anxious to begin the
regular season.
"Right before the exhibition game I was really nervous,"
Karel said. "But I think right now I'm more excited than nervous. I really just
want to get the season under way and get everything else started."
The team begins the season with the No. 24 ranking in the
ESPN Media Panel Preseason Poll. Senior Jolene Anderson also earned an
individual honor, being named the preseason Big Ten Player of the Year.
Despite all the hype surrounding her team, Anderson and the
Badgers are not taking Cleveland State lightly.
"We know that they’re going to come ready to play and
they're going to bring their A-game," Anderson said. "We're always trying to go
out there and make a statement, especially when we start the season out on the
road."
Wisconsin returns all five of its starters from last year’s
record-setting team and brings its three freshmen into the mix as well.
"Talk about this year being
special," Stone said in Monday's press conference. "We're deeper. We're
talented. Our team is very much together. … Success is a journey, not a
destination. And we want to get better every day. That's our main focus."
After blowing out two Division III teams, Wisconsin faces
its first Division I opponent Friday and looks to continue its success.
"There's no question that it's important to win our first
game," Stone said. "We're looking forward to the long trip, and it's absolutely
important to start off the season with a win, especially on the road."
For Karel and the team’s other freshmen, Friday’s game will
be their first on the road with the Badgers.
"We've got a lot of learning to do, but hopefully I can
contribute to the team, and once we figure our roles on the team, we can do
what's best for it," Karel said.
Stone, who compared Karel to Pete Marovich, gave the
freshman point guard a significant amount of playing time in both exhibition
games, and remarked that her exceptional all-around game play will earn her
playing time as the season progresses.
Jolene Anderson also sees Karel, as well as the rest of the
freshmen, as an important addition of the team.
"The freshmen are great players, as well as great people,"
Anderson said. "They're going to accept their role on this basketball team, whatever
role Coach Stone gives them, and they're going to play it to the fullest.
They're going to contribute a great deal to our basketball team, and I'm
excited."
The Badgers hope to bring the same intensity and physical
game they brought to both exhibition games. If they do that, Stone feels that
they will surely win their season opener and maintain a ranking in the media
poll.
"We've got a tough November here,"
Stone said. "We're on the road quite a bit. And our challenge for our players
again is to stay focused on each game at hand, understand that we're going to
have to play as well on the road as we do at home, and bring that same energy
that we saw in exhibition games."
Injury report
The entire team will not be in action Friday, as Wisconsin
will be without senior forward Ivana Mijalcevic, who suffered a mouth injury
during practice Nov. 6 after colliding with sophomore forward Brittany Heins.
Heins averaged 2.9 points per game last season, while Mijalcevic added 1.6 per
game. They are both listed as day-to-day.
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