The Lady Lions (20-6, 12-4 Big Ten) had their day of reckoning with the Buckeyes (16-10, 9-7) yesterday, defeating them 77-62. The victory avenged the Big Ten schedule-opening debacle when Ohio State embarrassed the Lions 72-54 at The Bryce Jordan Center.

Especially vindicating for the Lions was getting their revenge before a national telecast audience on ESPN2 and a record crowd of 11,088 Buckeye partisans at the new Value City Arena. Penn State was primed to show Columbus, Ohio, and the country its mettle.

"Away games give you character and we're going to show that we have a lot today," Lion coach Rene Portland told ESPN2 before the game.

The Lions roared from the opening tip, taking a 10-0 lead in the early minutes of the game. However, as they have been all year, the Buckeyes were tough nuts to crack. Although Penn State never trailed in the game, the physical play of Ohio State and the sometimes-sloppy play of the Lions kept the game close. Ohio State tried to clamp down the high-octane Lion offense by out-rebounding the top rebounding team in the Big Ten.

"Box them out," Ohio State coach Beth Burns said. "That's the key to our strategy."

That key didn't fit.

Penn State won the war of the boards, 41-35, in a game marked by tough defense, errant passing and fouls -- lots of them. The Lions scored 29 points off of free throws, which helped close the gap of missed opportunities from their 23 turnovers. Penn State also capitalized on its in-bound passing, scoring several quick layups to help its cause. The Lions even added a new inbounds play for their season-ending rendezvous with the Buckeyes.

"We have (an inbounds play) called Ohio State," Portland said. "Our philosophy is that it's a cheap way to get easy buckets, and it makes preparation for Penn State Lady Lion basketball that much harder."

Apparently it did the trick.

Forward Lisa Shepherd led the scoring for the Lions with 24 points, which must have felt like an anvil off of her back. In the prior meeting between the two teams, Shepherd made her first career start and Ohio State crashed the sophomore's coming out party -- Shepherd was a dreadful 0 for 10 from the field in that game.

Forward Clara Carter added a double-double, scoring 13 points and banging out 14 rebounds while Columbus native Helen Darling scored 11 and had six assists. The guard needs only two more assists to reach 500 for her career. Center Andrea Garner also reached double figures, chipping in 11 points to the Lion cause.

With the regular season behind them, the Lions head to Indianapolis at week's end for the Big Ten women's basketball tournament, and a potential third meeting with Ohio State. The Lions will be the No. 2 seed in the tournament.