The Nittany Lions had just dropped their eighth straight contest in the Big Ten and Ed DeChellis was looking particularly despondent. The first-year Penn State men's basketball coach has been fighting a cold and the same obstacles facing his young team for weeks now.

All good superheroes -- or, in this case, superstars -- need a good sidekick, someone to carry the load when it looks as if the superhero may in fact be just a mere mortal.

The roar after every Penn State basket was deafening. The shouts of "De-fense" and the waving of shakers persisted through the game. And in the final minutes, the whole house was on its feet, ready to dub the home team champs and the visiting team overrated.

Jay-Z was right all along.

They've paid their dues, time after time. They've had their share of sand kicked in their face, but they've come through.

Michigan State men's basketball coach Tom Izzo is fully aware of his squad's shooting capabilities, and it is for that reason that he has focused his latest offensive strategy around his team's young shooting talents.

MLK floor expansion right step toward a comfortable climate

My Opinion: Allen Tingley

• Invest in earplugs to drown late-night noise
• Take responsibility, use PSU's alternative offers
• Separation of church, state lost in gay debate
• Animals join humans in varied sex orientations
• Britney, celebrities hurt institution of marriage

by University Health Services

Inner Workings: How do snowmakers used at ski resorts work?

The Best Doctors database was originally developed to empower other patients through medical information. Today, Best Doctors is the leading medical company helping people around the world find the doctors they need, when they need them.

According to a study conducted by researchers at the Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia and the National Research Council of Canada, teenagers with major depression may have small hippocampuses. The hippocampus, the part of the brain associated with memory, is apparently significantly smaller in teenagers with depression than in teenagers that don't have depression.

Spring break in a warm, sunny place like Cancun may seem like a great change of scenery for students, but they may be at risk for cancer later, said Dr. Gavin Robertson, assistant professor of dermatology at the Hershey Medical Center.

Spring break is next week, and many students are rushing to diet off the extra pounds. Some fad diets offer a quick solution to weight problems, and others, such as the Zone diet, offer a lifestyle change that leads to weight loss.

Studies are demonstrating that air pollution is not being regulated effectively and that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) laws for air pollution are outdated and unaccommodating, said Bill Easterling, professor of geography and Penn State Institutes of the Environment director. Easterling said a research department in the School of Forest Resources at Penn State studies the effectiveness of the Clean Air Act on aquatic ecosystems.

The next time you cut out the crossword section of the newspaper, check the label on your scissors. They may contain antibacterial agents regularly found in your soap, spray cleaner, toothpaste, body wash and hand sanitizers. In fact, if you find yourself in England, look for antibacterial plastic food storage containers, or if in Italy's public laundries, you will find that antibacterial agents are touted. Keep an eye out in Boston for mattresses, pillows, sheets, towels and slippers saturated with a common antibacterial agent called triclosan.

My Opinion: Emily Gelsomin

My Opinion: Linda LaSalle

Anime club features weekly showings on campus, attracts students

In the middle of the woods near Shaver's Creek, amid the snow-laden willow trees and hastily assembled nests of hibernating mammals, stands a much larger construction of a wholly human origin.