Jenny Brenden is the spark plug. And, apparently, Jen Harris is "the truth."

What the latter means is vague at best, but the former is certainly the truth.

Against No. 14 Minnesota Sunday, the No. 23 Penn State women's basketball team hoisted a huge second-half surge to break away from the Golden Gophers.

Brenden's wide-open 3-point shot pushed the Lady Lions lead into double digits and put the Gophers on their backs.

"That was a major, major 3," Penn State coach Rene Portland said. "Her 3 the other night turned the tide."

Brenden, the fifth-year senior from Sauk Rapids, Minn., isn't your average sixth man, or in her case, sixth woman.

She's listed in the media guide as a guard, and at 5-foot-10 that seems like a good fit. But watch any Lady Lions game this season, and it's a completely different story.

"She's played the one, the two, the three, the four and the five at Penn State," Portland said. "I don't recall any other player really doing that."

Brenden usually pops into the game to replace forward Amanda Brown at the four spot.

It's usually a bad sign when a team is forced to play a guard at one of the two posts, but the Lady Lions haven't lost a step with Brenden in the paint.

"On defense I can fluster their posts if their posts are a big part of the game, just because I'm a different look out there," Brenden said. "I've been lucky because I haven't been taken advantage of too much in the low post."

Portland said it's intelligence that sets Brenden apart.

"She's probably the smartest kid I've ever coached," Portland said. "She's a great utility player."

Brenden gives Portland great minutes off the bench, averaging 17.4 minutes per game, and doesn't shy away from shooting from downtown, third on the team in attempts with 44.

It's that old sports cliché alive, again -- hardworking kid in the gym, consistently topping the team's grade point average, finally gets time to shine as a senior.

Against Northwestern, Brenden was forced to do some time at the point-guard slot, with Jess Strom not making the trip due to an illness, and Tanisha Wright struggling in the position.

It was the first time she's played back at guard all year, further establishing her utility-player persona.

When asked if she could sympathize with the other famous utility player at Penn State, football's Michael Robinson, Brenden laughed.

"I don't know if I could compare myself to someone on the football team," Brenden said. "But it's a tough job to have. I've enjoyed doing it just because it's given me the chance to be on the court more. But it's a tough job, I'll give him that."

The 3-pointer against the Gophers was clutch, another spark-plug moment for Brenden.

"I've had a couple people say that to me," Brenden said. "I just get out there. Getting a big shot obviously helps. I just go out and try to bring a little energy and a little enthusiasm when I get in there because we got a couple of girls who play a lot of minutes. Sometimes it's hard to keep that energy going, so that's another part of it too. I just want to take advantage of every moment I get out of there on the court."