COLLEGE BASKETBALL / NCAA WOMEN’S TOURNAMENT : Roles Reversed for Stanford, Virginia : Second semifinal: When the Cardinal beat the Cavaliers two years ago, it was the more experienced team.

Lasting impressions of the most recent game between Virginia and Stanford, two years ago in the NCAA semifinals at Knoxville, Tenn.:

--Stanford guard Jennifer Azzi making three-pointer after three-pointer.

--Virginia guard Dawn Staley rendered somewhat ineffective by muscle cramps late in the first half.

--The Cavaliers’ . . . well, cavalier attitude after losing to the Cardinal, 75-66.

Tammi Reiss shook her head in disgust Friday when reminded about that loss. The senior guard from Virginia doesn’t take defeat lightly.

“After the game, everyone was really happy,” she said. “Everyone was laughing and saying, ‘What are we going to do tonight?’ I said to myself, ‘Were we just happy to be here? And did we really think we could win this game?’

“I was kind of upset. Because I thought we were just happy being there.”

Two years later, Virginia has another chance at its first NCAA basketball championship. The All-American backcourt of Reiss and Staley will lead the top-ranked Cavaliers (32-1) against No. 3 Stanford (28-3) in the second semifinal of today’s Final Four at the Sports Arena.

Each team is playing in its third consecutive Final Four.

The roles have changed from 1990, though. With only one senior on the team, Stanford wasn’t expected to be so good again so soon. And Virginia is like the Stanford team of 1990--a talented and internationally experienced squad.

“We were picked from the beginning to come as one of the top dogs to the Final Four,” Reiss said. “We set this as our goal. That’s the difference. We believe we can win this thing. We’re much more focused and determined and hungry. That’s the difference. Last year’s loss to Tennessee--we had to live with that the whole summer.”

Which is why the Cavaliers are playing with a single-minded intensity. Why else would they forget to cut the net down after winning the East Regional last weekend at home in Charlottesville, Va.? The Virginia players simply skipped basketball’s traditional ceremony.

It wasn’t the first time the Cavaliers have been absent-minded this season. Earlier, they left their Atlantic Coast Conference awards behind in Rock Hill, S.C.

For them, Los Angeles and a national title were their only concern.

“To come away not victorious, it would be devastating for quite some time,” Reiss said. “But it won’t override what this team is all about. . . . It’s not putting pressure on us. We’re taking it in a positive perspective.”

By that same token, Stanford is not content simply to have reached the Final Four.

Two of the Cardinal’s key players, junior point guard Molly Goodenbour and junior center Val Whiting, rarely played two years ago in Knoxville. They didn’t get much game experience in that Final Four, but Goodenbour said there was benefit in simply being there.

“Just because we’re young doesn’t mean we can’t do it now,” she said.

“Stanford’s going to be good for years to come. We’re not just happy to reach the Final Four. We think we can win a national championship.”

Said Stanford Coach Tara VanDerveer: “You never know what can happen. Last year, we were hurt by injuries. (Freshman) Rachel (Hemmer), Christy, Val or Molly would be foolish to think that we’ll come back and do it next year.”

Determination is not the only trait the teams share, however. The Cavaliers have tinkered with their offense because of the emergence of the 6-foot-5 Burge twins, Heather and Heidi. Staley, a Naismith Award winner, and Reiss aren’t the only go-to players anymore, as evidenced by Heather Burge’s team-leading 17.4-point scoring average and 8.5 rebounding average.

Stanford also has strength inside and outside. When Texas Tech and USC used a variety of zone defenses at the West Regionals to shut down the 6-3 Whiting, who is averaging 18.3 points, and the 6-3 Hemmer (11.2), Goodenbour and sophomore Christy Hedgpeth cut loose with three-point shots.

“I think the key will be to take away their perimeter shooting and make them do the things they don’t usually do,” Reiss said.

That’s easier said than done.

As Virginia Coach Debbie Ryan put it: “It’s sort of like choosing your own poison.”