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In a year when the expectations aren’t exactly through the roof, the UW women’s basketball team is taking a different approach this season than in years past. Picked to finish 10th in the Big Ten conference by the media, the team has taken a “chip on their shoulder” mentality into the season, which starts Sunday afternoon with an exhibition game against UW-River Falls at the Kohl Center.

“We are ready and really excited to play a game,” coach Lisa Stone said at her press conference Monday. “I like what I see out of our team. There’s a blue-collar mentality, and they know that we have to do this together. They know everybody has to step up. This team has an underdog mentality, a little chip on their shoulder, and they’re excited to start the season.”

Despite being picked only to finish ahead of Northwestern, Stone knows preseason polls mean little.

“You can look at preseason polls, but we haven’t played a game yet; it’s hard to measure where we’re at,” Stone said. “But we’re now the hunter instead of the hunted.”

The Badgers take on a Division III UW-River Falls squad that finished last season 8-18 in the WIAC conference on Sunday. Stone knows it will be good experience for a young squad lacking in that category, as there is only one senior on the UW roster.

“The new coaches and players are looking forward to playing,” Stone said. “It will be great to get some experience, get your feet wet and execute things offensively and defensively. Going against each other for a few weeks gets a little wearing, so going against an opponent is something we look forward to.”

Tough shoes to fill

This season will also be the first in four years the Badgers haven’t had Jolene Anderson on their roster. Anderson, who graduated last year, averaged 19.9 points and 7.7 rebounds per game a season ago, leaving as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 2,312 points. Stone knows one player alone can’t match Anderson’s contribution but is hoping that multiple players will be able to fill in.

“Without 20 points a game, we have to get it from somewhere,” Stone said of Anderson’s departure. “That somewhere is the collective unit of our team. I’ve seen a little more patience in practice and working very hard for a good shot. We’re trying to get a lot of people to join the offensive party.”

Stone expects major contributions from everyone including the four incoming freshmen — guards Jade Davis and Jamie Russell and forwards Ashley Thomas and Anya Covington.

“All the freshmen are going to get a piece of the minutes early on,” Stone said. ” I’m excited about the potential of some of the players who could go off with big numbers but don’t necessarily have to. Hopefully we get those numbers from a lot of different people.”

Improvement on defense and turnovers

Last season, the Badgers struggled with turnovers and overall team defense. They allowed 66.9 points per game and turned the ball over 16 times a contest. Stone says the team has focused on these two aspects in the past few weeks of preparation.

“Much better defense and cutting down on our turnovers is a big emphasis,” Stone said. “Turnovers are something that we chart and mark down each day of practice. We look for positive possessions. They’ve paid conscious attention to turnovers, but we don’t want them to be afraid to play. They’re going to make mistakes, but we want it to be when they’re trying to get good shots.

“You’ll see a different team this year with a certain toughness and unified approach.”