When Kim Barnes Arico was just getting her rebuilding project going at St. John's, she and her son could only dream about going to the NCAA tournament.
She inherited a program that had losing records in seven straight seasons and went 0-16 in Big East play before she took over. Just getting to the WNIT was an accomplishment.
''Maybe one day we can make the big dance,'' her son, Trevor, would tell her. ''We go to the little dance.''
Now, she wants to get to the next level. Third-seeded St. John's (23-9) has made the tournament three years in a row, winning its opener each time, and carries the highest seed in school history in this year's tournament.
Standing in the way is a road game at sixth-seeded Oklahoma (21-12) on Tuesday night. The tournament-tested Sooners are two years removed from back-to-back Final Fours and team captain Whitney Hand set the tone for the postseason by saying even a return to the round of 16 for the sixth time in seven years wouldn't be satisfying.
The Red Storm see it differently. They've never made it out of the second round, losing in 1998, 2006 and the past two years.
''We've had (postseason) play every year I've been here but it's just continued to get better and this next step will definitely be great to show where the program's going and continuing to get better throughout the years that I've been here,'' forward Da'Shena Stevens said Monday. ''To be able to compete on this level consistently would mean a lot for our program.''
To a degree, the Red Storm are still becoming accustomed to their national standing. They created headlines by snapping Connecticut's 99-game home winning streak last month and finished the season ranked 14th.
But before an opening-round scare 69-67 scare against No. 14 seed Creighton, Barnes Arico said she sensed a different look in her players' eyes: pressure. On game day, she even got questions about where Creighton was located and she considered it a sign they didn't realize how good the Bluejays would be.
''These young ladies, they've never been here so it's a little bit of an adjustment. It's a little bit of an adjustment for me,'' Barnes Arico said. ''I think that's why we can't look at the big picture because it will become a little bit overwhelming.''
The Sooners, however, are somewhat programmed to expect greatness.
''Being able to do something great with this team ... it's kind of almost expected, being at this school with so many athletes that have done so much before us,'' said starting forward Kaylon Williams, just a freshman.
Oklahoma had its biggest breakthrough a decade ago, making it all the way to the 2002 national championship game against Connecticut following back-to-back losses in the regional semifinals.
Eight of the past 12 seasons have featured trips to the round of 16 or beyond. Hand is the lingering connection between the Final Four teams, having played in it as a freshman and missing it with a knee injury as a sophomore.
''I think Whitney can convey all of the possible emotions and feelings that these kids might have. She's been there as a player. She's had to be there in street clothes and watch it. She's not made it. Last year, the sweet 16 was the stopping point for her,'' coach Sherri Coale said.
''That's a pretty cool thing when you're in your third season and you're just disappointed as all get out because you're in the Sweet 16.''
That attitude has permeated the team, and Coale credits not only Hand but the line of stars, including All-Americans Stacey Dales and Courtney Paris, that created the tradition at Oklahoma.
''That collection is special and I think it buoys our team,'' Coale said. ''I think they feel proud of themselves and they ride it and yet - here comes your fine line - when does that become an albatross around your neck? I think that's where it's our job as a coaching staff to make sure that it drives them and propels them and is the carrot out there on the stick but yet it doesn't weigh them down.''
At this time of year, Coale said she'll encourage her players to try and follow in the footsteps of Sooners from years past but also tell them ''this one is just about us and who we are right now.''
''I think sometimes they have to be reminded of that,'' she said, ''but I'd rather have it than not have it.''
It's that point that St. John's is trying to reach and beating Oklahoma would be a big step in the right direction.
''Where we have come from and where we are today is significantly different. ... We came from the bottom,'' Barnes Arico said. ''We were always trying to get to those places, and always just trying to make a tournament.''
