Forget the film room -- upon hearing of North Dakota State's weekend upset over tonight's opponent, Wisconsin, Ed DeChellis said he was headed straight to church.

"[I'm] going to mass, I'm telling you, going to mass at five o'clock," the Penn State men's basketball coach said, shaking his head.

It didn't seem like North Dakota State had a prayer at winning, and now the No. 21 Badgers are as angry as ever -- and Penn State will have to deal with that at 8 tonight in Madison.

Even Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan acknowledged anger would probably play a role.

"Anger, it's an amazing thing," Ryan said. "On defense, if you get a little angry there are some things you can anticipate -- you jump on a pass, you get a deflection, you get something."

Even without the Badgers' "Hulk"-like response to Saturday's upset loss, the Nittany Lions would have their hands full. Penn State (10-6, 2-3 Big Ten) is the shortest team in the Big Ten, and Wisconsin is the tallest.

The Badgers have four starters that are as tall, or taller, than Penn State's biggest starting man. And the average Wisconsin starter is a staggering 6-foot-7 -- compared to the Lions' paltry 6-foot-3.

Not only will that force Penn State to play a 2-3 zone, but it should also create plenty of offensive mismatches for Wisconsin (14-4, 4-1).

"They're very big, and we can't change that," DeChellis said. "[We'll] try to bring our posts from the basket and make them guard on the perimeter a little more."

Sophomore forward Geary Claxton tried to downplay the height difference, saying it's "not that hard" to guard a taller player. Then again, he cited Pittsburgh as an example and believed Penn State was in a similar position there.

Well, the Lions lost to the Panthers, 91-54, earlier in the season -- and Pittsburgh's squad is actually shorter than Wisconsin's mammoth lineup. Penn State was out-rebounded in that contest, 49-30.

Rebounding isn't the only issue, though. Penn State's offense will undoubtedly struggle against a team it won't be able to drive against. According to sophomore guard Mike Walker, that's why perimeter shooting will play a key role in tonight's contest.

"A lot of our success this year deals with the perimeter players hitting shots," he said, using himself and guard David Jackson as examples.

Walker has been the team's biggest 3-point threat, going 26-for-62 from behind the arc. Jackson, on the other hand, is tied for third on the team in 3s with 12 -- shooting 27.3 percent. Needless to say, Jackson will have to be on fire because a win won't come easily.

And after tonight's game, it won't get any easier. Penn State is in the middle of its toughest three-game stretch of the season, and tonight appears to be the most difficult test the Lions have faced.

"So far, Wisconsin is definitely the best team we've played," Walker said.

Notes

Two of the Badgers' key reserves will not be in the lineup tonight after sitting in the loss to North Dakota State.

Sophomore Greg Stiemsma has taken a temporary leave of absence due to personal medical reasons, and freshman Marcus Landry was ruled academically ineligible to play during the second semester.

The pair averaged a combined 27.1 playing minutes, 8.8 points and 5.9 rebounds.