Anticipation -- that's the operative word for this game.

Because this is the is the game that everyone -- the fans, the players, the coaches and the Big Ten conference alike -- have all been anticipating for not just weeks, but since the beginning of the season.

And finally, the anticipation will become reality when the No. 6 Penn State women's basketball team (22-4, 14-1) meets No. 4 Purdue (24-2, 14-1) 1:30 p.m. Sunday in the Bryce Jordan Center to decide the Big Ten regular-season conference title.

And certainly this game is what everyone was expecting it to be. Why else would both the coaches and media pick the Boilermakers and Lady Lions to finish first and second in their preseason polls?

Adding to the hype is the largest audience to watch Penn State this season. The Lions will play in front of their first national audience of the season on ESPN2 and what could be the second Jordan Center sell-out crowd for a women's basketball game. The first, on Feb. 15 against Michigan, came about because a significant number of tickets were given away.

Just like everyone else, Big Ten officials knew what the magnitude of this game was likely to be, and they were smart enough to make it the regular season finale.

And just like everyone else, at least one member of the team is looking forward to it just as much -- even though she might try to hide it.

Earlier in the week, the Lions knew they would have a tough matchup with No. 22 Michigan State before they got to Purdue, but that didn't stop junior guard Tanisha Wright from revealing just a sliver of her excitement over facing the Boilermakers for the Big Ten crown.

Wright said when asked about the playing Purdue: "It's fun. This Sunday's game is going to be ... I mean, I don't want to jump ahead."

Wright later said she looks forward to the matchup with the Boilermakers.

"The whole exciting thing about Sunday [against Purdue] is it's going to be a fun atmosphere," she said. "It's going to be great to play in that type of atmosphere."

It may be a plus for the Lions that Wright is looking forward to this game; Wright will need to be ready if she, the Penn State junior and reigning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, has any chance of containing one of the Big Ten's top scorers, Purdue's Shereka Wright.

And for the rest of the team, it shouldn't be difficult to get psyched for this clash. With the Jordan Center projecting a sell out and one of the all-time greats in Lady Lions history, senior Kelly Mazzante, playing in her last home game, the battle is sure to have more emotion than any home game Penn State has played this season.

This is the game everyone hoped for, but in what may be the strongest, deepest year the league has ever had, Purdue women's basketball coach Kristy Curry is still a little surprised the Big Ten regular season title chase would be contested to this degree -- with one game deciding the champion.

"Look at both of our records," she said. "Who would have thought we would go through this with one loss? I thought the champ would have three or four losses."

Instead it turned out to be what many had anticipated.

"It all lucked out that it's going to turn out great," Penn State women's basketball coach Rene Portland said. "It's really very exciting because everybody is talking about it, everybody is excited about it."