By SCOTT NOVAK

Dowagiac Daily News

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – A year ago, the Vermont women’s basketball team was a No. 16 seed and had to face soon to be undefeated national champion Connecticut in the opening round on the Huskies’ home floor.

What a difference a year makes.

Last year Vermont went into the NCAA tournament with the mindset of just playing well, not trying to win a basketball game.

But on Sunday afternoon at the Joyce Center at Notre Dame, the Catamounts feel like they have a realistic shot at defeating Wisconsin.

Vermont (26-6) is a No. 10 seed this season, while the Badgers are a No. 7 seed with a 21-10 mark.

Standout guard May Kotsopoulos said that the team comes into the 2010 NCAA Tournament looking for the program’s first ever tourney victory, not just wanting to play well.

“Coming off of the experience last year has definitely helped get those first-time jitters out of the way,” she said.  “Going to the big stage at the tournament is a big deal, and going last year definitelyput us through that experience. It was a little different last year being faced against UConn, who is such an unbelievable program and team, so it has helped us this year to learn that experience and brig it back to teach our freshmen.”

The Catamounts have a pair of outstanding guards in Kotsopoulos and Courtney Pilypaitis.

Kotsopoulos averages 17.3 points per game, while Pilypaitis averages 14.8. The two combined for more than 10 rebounds a contest.

The remaining starters for Vermont are Sofia Iwobi, Alissa Sheftic and Kendra Seto.

Vermont coach Sharon Dawley said the team is excited to be here and looks forward to taking on Wisconsin.

After all, they aren’t Connecticut.

“We’re just very excited to return to the NCAA tournament,” she said at a Saturday afternoon press conference at Notre Dame. “We had a wonderful experience last year. I was very proud of the girls being the 16th seed and matched up against UConn was daunting, but we did our best and played very, very hard.”

Dawley said that rebounding, winning the tempo war and executing their sets on offense were the keys to playing well on Sunday against the Badgers.

“I would say very solid,” Dawley answered. “They’re a very solid team that plays great defense, very smart, works well together and plays very well as a unit on offense. They are all skilled. Sometimes you’re scouting a team that is good and athletic, but not quite skilled. They are very intellegent, very composed with their two guards that showed they could score during the Ohio State game. I love the way the post can pass out of the post and share the basketball shows why they are here.”

Vermont is a team that believes in being loose and having fun. That can sometimes be mistaken for not taking the game seriously.

Dawley said that, that isn’t the case.

“While we are getting our work done we are still trying to keep it fun,” she said. “While it’s not that we’re not serious, we try to keep it light and fun. We are reminding our girls that we have have been preparing for this for a long time.”

The Catamounts are hoping to have a lot of fun Sunday afternoon against the Badgers and earn the school’s first NCAA tourney victory and a spot in the second round against either No. 2 seed Notre Dame or Cleveland State.