[media-credit name=’AJ Maclean’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]After months of off-season workouts and preparation, the Wisconsin women's basketball team opens its two game exhibition series this Sunday against Wisconsin AAU.

Wisconsin AAU once again features several players with ties to Wisconsin, most of who played either high school or college ball in the Badger state. Some notable names on the AAU roster include former Badgers Jessie Stomski and LaTonya Sims, who rank second and fourth on Wisconsin's career scoring list.

Last year's AAU squad featured hall-of-famer Nancy Lieberman; Wisconsin easily dispensed of her team 84-57.

The Badgers started practice the first possible moment they could, at 12:01AM, Oct. 16 and have been going playing together in a team setting for almost month.

"It's dark at night — it feels like basketball season; we just need a fleck of snow out there and we'll be ready to go," head coach Lisa Stone said. "You can find out how much we have implemented so far, whether that is too much or not enough. It's a great time for evaluation of the staff standpoint and the team standpoint. It's also just fun to go play against someone else than your teammates."

The Badgers have been anxiously waiting to get back on the court after a disappointing 10-17 showing last season, in Stone's rookie campaign. Last season was quite uncharacteristic of what she had accomplished in her career. Stone, who led UW-Eau Claire and Drake to winning seasons and conference championships year in and year out was dealt the first losing season in her head coaching career.

"We were so close, yet so far away," Stone said. "Moral victories, that's just not the way I work. However, when you look at the grand scheme of things, in 10 wins we had and the five games that maybe got away, those go a different way we're playing postseason."

While several of the Badgers' losses were decided in the last moments of the game, they were never able to register most of those close games into the win column. Despite its losing record, Wisconsin was able to compete against some of the top teams in the Big Ten conference, including a one-point loss at home against nationally ranked Penn State. This is one of many reasons the Badgers and Stone remain optimistic and excited looking ahead to what this season can bring.

"That's just the way I am; I'm the same way today as I will be 30 years from now. I'm driven by energy, I'm driven by emotion and my glass is half full," Stone said. "I believe in this team; I'm excited about them. They are a wonderful group of young women who like each other and care about each other who hopefully will bring some great Badger wins to Madison."

Wisconsin did graduate the tallest front line in the Big Ten in 6-foot-7 Lello Gebisa and 6-foot-5 Emily Ashbaugh, but six promising freshmen will try their best to fill that void. All six Badger freshmen were ranked by All-Star Girls Report — including guard Jolene Anderson, who finished her high school career as Wisconsin's all-time leading prep scorer and 2004 AP State Player of the Year.

Anderson averaged 37.1 points and 15.1 rebounds her senior season and also holds the record for most points in a game with 58.

"She can do it all, but we also need to understand that she doesn't have to take the whole world on her shoulders," said Stone. "Patience that she's going to receive from us, I'm not putting any due pressure on her. Just go out and have some fun and do what you can do."

Freshman post player Lesha Jones will not be available to play this season due to a knee injury suffered during her senior season in Detroit. With Jones' injury, Stone will still have 11 players at her disposal including six key returnees off last year's roster, including senior co-captains Ebba Gebisa and Stephanie Rich.

Gebisa started 21 games for the Badgers last season, while Rich stepped in at point guard to lead the conference in assists with over 5.8 per game. With both Rich and Gebisa seniors, the Badgers would like nothing better than to get this season off on a winning note, which they hope could then bode well for the rest of the season.

"What I see in the two of them physically is that they want it really bad," Stone said. "I need to be in constant communication with those two to help, not only their senior year be a special one, but also this as a team be a very special season."

"You always want to end your career on a good note," Rich said. "We just want to have a good time, have fun with our teammates and look back and say we're going to produce the future of Wisconsin women's basketball."