At 7:30 p.m. today the Lady Lions (12-4, 4-2 Big Ten) travel to Assembly Hall in Champaign, Ill., to battle the Illinois Fighting Illini (10-7, 4-3) before returning to Happy Valley to play the Indiana Hoosiers (13-8, 2-5) at 5 p.m. Sunday at The Bryce Jordan Center. Each matchup features the red-hot Lions against a pair of young, struggling Big Ten teams and affords the Lions a chance to pad their conference record.

Tonight's game pits friend vs. friend on the sideline, as Lion coach Rene Portland and Illini coach Theresa Grentz try to out-strategize one another. The pair played college hoops together from 1972-74 on three national championship teams at Immaculata College. This is the 37th time Grentz and Portland's teams have faced each other since their playing days ended, with Portland's teams currently holding a 19-17 edge.

Grentz offered praise for her former teammate's squad.

"This team (Penn State) has really stepped up into its own," Grentz said. "They really play well as a team."

The Illini are coming off of a banner 1997-98 season which saw them reach the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16 round for the second straight year. However, the team graduated four key seniors and is in a rebuilding mode.

"The good thing about our team is that they are so young, and they're learning," Grentz said.

Illinois is led by junior forward Tauja Catchings who has managed to peek out of the shadow cast by her sister Tamika, a phenom at top-ranked Tennessee. The Illini have also seen stellar play from junior forward Susan Blauser, who is third in the Big Ten in points per game with a 17.7 average.

"Everybody goes through that cycle where you graduate people and the impact of losing your last class is felt," Portland said. "But (Illinois') youth is a real positive thing for them."

Also of note is Illini assistant coach Kathy McConnell-Miller. McConnell-Miller is the sister of Lion legend, Olympic Gold Medalist and star of the WNBA's Cleveland Rockers, Suzie McConnell-Serio.

Sunday, the Lions will return to their Jordan Center stomping grounds to face Southern gentleman Jim Izard's Indiana Hoosiers. The last meeting between these two teams was at the Jordan Center in the semifinals of the 1998 Women's NIT Tournament, in which the Lions rolled to victory, 70-42. The Hoosiers have struggled through their conference schedule, still reeling from the graduation of last year's leading scorer, Quacy Barnes.

One of the interesting matchups in this game will be between Penn State's scoring and rebounding ace, center Andrea Garner, and Indiana's upstart freshman center Jill Chapman. Garner is among the Big Ten leaders in scoring and rebounding, averaging 14.8 points and 9.3 boards per contest. Chapman, however, has made her presence known in her debut Big Ten season, averaging 13.5 points and 7.6 rebounds per game.

With the relative inexperience of their forthcoming opposition, the Lions have an excellent opportunity this weekend to capitalize and pick up ground in the Big Ten race.