The Wisconsin women’s basketball team (8-10, 2-6) will begin a two-game road trip when they face conference rival Indiana (8-11, 1-8) Thursday at Assembly Hall. The game will be the first meeting between the two squads since the Hoosiers defeated the Badgers in the opening round of last year’s Big Ten tournament, 57-39.
The Badgers enter the contest coming off a much-needed conference victory over the Michigan Wolverines Sunday, 79-71. A Wisconsin win over Indiana would give the Badgers their first two-game winning streak since they defeated UW-Green Bay and Santa Clara consecutively back in December.
However, head coach Lisa Stone and her squad will focus not on the possibility of extending the winning streak, but on the chance to move up in the Big Ten standings. After last season’s tournament debacle, the Badgers recognize that in order to make some noise in the conference they will have to win this year’s showdown.
“It’s extremely important,” Stone said. “First of all, if you look at the game we played at Indiana last year, this is one that we want to play better. That was little bit of a nightmare. It was a turning point for our team.”
Indiana entered the season hoping to improve on last year’s 4-12 conference record, but the team has continued to struggle this season, posting a 1-8 Big Ten record thus far in the 2004-05 campaign. The Hoosiers were dealt a difficult blow to their heightened expectations prior to the season when all-Big Ten honoree Jenny DeMuth went down for the season with a knee injury.
DeMuth led the Hoosiers in virtually every statistical category last season including points (18.3 per game), rebounds (7.7 per game) and steals (2.5 per game).
“Without Jenny (DeMuth) they’re a different team, she’s a leader,” Stone said. “She came in with Kathi (Bennett)’s first recruiting class. She’s a tremendous player, (and) she’ll be back next year. She has a sixth-year senior on her team, in (Jamie) Gathing, who’s been through everything with Kathi (Bennett). So they’re inspired, they’re looking for some answers as well.”
Despite the senior leadership from Gathing and others, the Indiana offense has been far from potent in Demuth’s absence. Indiana is averaging only 50.7 points per game so far this season, last in the Big Ten. The Hoosiers’ mark is more than nine points per game lower than Northwestern, the next-lowest-scoring team in the conference.
Junior guard Cyndi Valentin is the only Hoosier averaging double figures in scoring this season, posting 16.0 points per game. Fellow guard LeeAnn Stephenson is second on the team in scoring with a paltry 6.6 points-per-game average.
As a team, Indiana is shooting a dismal 35 percent from the field, including only 30 percent from behind the 3-point line. The Hoosiers are also worst in the Big Ten in assists, dishing out a measly 9.4 assists per game as a team. In comparison, the Badgers are shooting 42 percent from the field and 34 percent from behind the arc, while averaging 15.5 assists per game as a team.
To help offset some of its offensive deficiencies, Indiana relies on a stingy defense. The Hoosiers have allowed an opponent field-goal percentage of 35 percent, tops in the Big Ten, and surrendered just 52.6 points per game, the second-best conference mark behind only Ohio State.
“The Michigan game, take for example, they were up on us, pressuring us and pressing us. That’s the Indiana style of basketball,” junior Annie Nelson said. “But they carry a little bit further in the half-court defense. A major focus of ours will be setting solid screens and using solid screens in order to get our offense going.”
However, a tough defensive style has problems of its own. The Hoosiers are sending teams to the free-throw line nearly 19 times a game. According to Stone, free throws will be a key factor for the Badgers against the Hoosiers.
“We have to get to the foul line both at Indiana and at Iowa to put ourselves in a good position to win,” Stone said.
The Hoosiers also hold a key home-court advantage. Historic Assembly Hall is a daunting place for any team to play. The Badgers have won in the building just twice in school history, posting a 2-22 all-time record at Assembly Hall.
In last year’s victory against Wisconsin, Indiana set a women’s basketball record for attendance thanks in large part to their “Pack the Hall” fundraiser. Fortunately for the Badgers, they will not have to deal with such numbers this season.
“Assembly Hall has been a tough place for the Badgers to play at in the past, but I don’t get wrapped up in that,” Stone said. “We can’t worry about what the streak is or how hard it is to play there.”
