Lady cagers eager to battle Purdue

By DAN GIGLER
Collegian Staff Writer

Thirty-eight days ago, an erratic Penn State women's basketball team ran a road-trip gauntlet that took it to play a tour-de-force Purdue women's squad at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind. The Lady Lions fought gallantly but succumbed to the talent and depth of the Boilermakers, 53-48.

The loss was part of a winter malaise that could have devastated a young team, struggling to find itself. Instead, the No. 15 Lady Lions (18-5, 10-3 Big Ten) have matured, gelled and scorched opponents, leaving behind the charred remains of nine Big Ten teams -- six consecutively.

"We're a different team than the one who played them in January," assistant coach Michael Peck said.

And now, the day of reckoning with Purdue has come.

At 7:30 tonight at The Bryce Jordan Center, the Lions will host the No. 2 Boilermakers (21-1, 21-0), with hopes of serving them a dish of Happy Valley hospitality.

"We're challenging the fans and the students to come out and come up big and be a sixth man for us," Peck said.

Lions Andrea Garner and Lisa Shepherd also said they hope the din at the Jordan Center will have a chilling effect on the hot play of Purdue.

However, crowd noise alone hardly will be enough to send the Boilermakers back to the cow plods of western Indiana. With Purdue comes the much ballyhooed backcourt play of senior co-captains and future WNBA shoe-ins Stephanie White-McCarty and Ukari Figgs.

Led by White-McCarty and Figgs, Purdue's season has been one of destiny. Under the poised leadership of Michael Peck's older sister, Purdue coach Carolyn Peck, the Boilermakers have thus far come within one point of a perfect season. That lone digit came in a 73-72 loss to Stanford. Also, Purdue has the bragging rights of being the only team in two years to defeat top-ranked, two-time defending NCAA champion Tennessee.

But, the Lions are no slouches either.

During their month-long tear, the Lions have become an offensive juggernaut, consistently scoring 80-plus points per game. Lisa Shepherd has developed into a serious long-range threat, Big Ten Player of the Week Andrea Garner owns the low-post, while Helen Darling's passing has been as crisp as an October afternoon. The Lions' bench has been like a second attack wave to opponents with the solid play of Chrissy Falcone, Maren Walseth, Rashana Barnes and Christine Portland.

Of the match-up between these Big Ten titans, coach Rene Portland said, "It's going to be a great basketball game, one you would want to watch."

Michael Peck likes the challenge his sister's team will bring.

"They're the No. 2 team in the country and they're coming to our house. We played them close there, and we've gotten better," he said.

Sunday, the Lions hope to break the hearts of the visiting Minnesota Golden Gophers (7-15, 2-10), who enter the Jordan Center on hard times. The aptly named Gophers have dug themselves into an insurmountable hole this season and are playing for pride. It is unlikely that a headlock from their home state's new governor on the Penn State post-players could help their situation.

But, first things first -- a score to settle with Purdue.

Said Shepherd: "It's all we've been thinking about."