BLOOMINGTON— The first game of the NCAA basketball tournament brings anticipation and jitters, expectations and hopes. All of those emotions figure into what the Indiana University women bring to Assembly Hall Saturday afternoon.

As a 24-5, fourth-seeded host, they carry their own and fans’ beliefs about what they are capable of accomplishing this March. As an even higher-thought-of team a year ago, also being anointed with the privilege of hosting early rounds, they are haunted by what happened in almost the exact same circumstances when they lost in the second round.

There should no sneaking up on the Hoosiers, even if 31-1 Fairfield fits the profile of a hot team determined to gain a higher national image with a desire to show the world something special.

Indiana of the Big Ten meets Fairfield, champion of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference at 1:30 p.m. in the Albany Regional, with the game’s victor playing the winner of Oklahoma-Florida Gulf Coast in Bloomington Monday.

“They’re all really good teams,” said IU sophomore Yarden Garzon in a sweeping statement that describes the four squads here and the entire field. “I’m really confident about our team.”

During the second half of the season, guard Sydney Parrish was injured and missed for six games, All-American Mackenzie Holmes tweaked her bothersome left knee and back-up center Lilly Meister sprained an ankle.

IU was upset in its first game in the Big Ten tournament, but since the team was still chosen to host home games, no harm was done. The players rested, got healthy, then practiced hard, coach Teri Moren said, so the Hoosiers benefited from time off.

Now it is championship time, March Madness, the holiday season for college basketball.

“It’s one of the best times of the year if you do what we do,” Moren said. “We’re grateful to be in this tournament — and we’re entitled to nothing.”

That may be a harsh lesson absorbed a year ago. After being ranked as high as No. 2 in the Associated Press national poll, the Hoosiers defeated Tennessee Tech, 77-47, only to be upset by Miami, 70-68, to end the season.

“We have to put it behind us,” Holmes said of that bad memory.

Most recently ranked No. 14, the Hoosiers have the weapons to make sweeter memories this time with a starting lineup of all double-figure scorers. Holmes is high scorer at 20 points, but Sara Scalia (16) and Garzon, Parrish and Chole Moore-McNeil all average between 10 and 11 points.

Holmes can intimidate with either hand in the low post and the others can run the offense and hit long-range jumpers.

Fairfield holds teams to just 54.1 ppg. and 35.6 percent shooting, the type of defense that leads to triumphs. A wide range of betting odds placed on the game have ranged from 12-to-25 points favoring IU.

“Our group has been here before,” Moren said. “We came up a little short last year.” Fairfield is a “very good team” if a little shorter compared to IU.

Remembering the surprise loss last year, Scala, the senior guard from Minnesota, said the thoughts it conjures up, “I would say definitely motivation. It’s definitely not a feeling you want to feel again.”

Holmes was not at 100 percent for last year’s tournament, and actually feels better this year despite missing most of the Big Ten tournament loss to Michigan. Moren said her players are healthy enough to go, but she will worry about any missteps.

Not so Holmes apparently.

“I don’t think that’s the way to play the game, playing in fear,” she said.

Fairfield did a pretty good job of striking fear into the hearts and minds of its league. Fairfield features three double-figure scorers, with freshman Meghan Anderson leading at 15.2 ppg.

“The fact that they shoot right around 242 more threes than we do says a lot about who they are in terms of how they want to generate their offense,” Moren said. “I think they do a tremendous job of really trying to put pressure on you, getting to the paint with two feet, draw two, and kick out. They share the ball extremely well.”

There is no suggestion Fairfield will be scared of IU.

“I think that the ride has just been something that we expected,” Fairfield guard Janelle Brown said. “We come into our games ready, even though we don’t really win pretty, we kind of win ugly. We have some gritty wins.”

No matter the point spread or the pedigree of teams, all that matters in March is Ws.