During the holiday break, junior guard Kam Gissendanner did a self-evaluation. She prayed to "get back to what I used to be."

What she used to be: one of the Lady Lions' top scoring threats.

What she was at the time: one of the Lady Lions' little-used bench options.

But she returned the Tuesday following Christmas with a different mindset and worked her way back into a starting role for the Penn State women's basketball team (9-11, 2-5 Big Ten), which takes on No. 23 Michigan State (15-4, 6-1) at 6 tonight in the Bryce Jordan Center.

"She's really been a very different human being since she's come back," Penn State head coach Rene Portland said. "Since she's come back from Christmastime, Kam's been very focused and you can see it in her play."

Seven games prior to the break, Gissendanner, a co-captain, found herself relegated to the bench. And she wasn't even one of the top options entering the game. Her playing time dropped sharply and, thus, her production tanked. She averaged 15.9 minutes, 7.3 points and 1.4 rebounds per game during the seven games she was on the bench.

But time at home over the break, time away from the game, time to think made all the difference.

"It's just about a mentality," Gissendanner said. "If you come with a killer mentality that you're not going to lose, that you're not going to miss this shot, then everything all starts to fall in place. Your defense starts to take care of itself and the offense feeds off the defense."

Now Gissendanner is leading the Lady Lions. Since the outset of the Big Ten schedule, which began seven games ago and immediately followed Christmas, she's been the team's most valuable scoring option.

Currently, though, she's averaging 18.3 points and 4.3 assists per game and is shooting 42.1 percent from the field along with averaging 34.1 minutes per game.

"I've been a winner all my life," Gissendanner said, "and I'm not about to sit here, and say, 'I let my teammates down.' It comes from inside, I guess."

Gissendanner, however, faced the reality that she's on a sub-.500 team.

"It's tough primarily because of what this program has been for the last 27 years basically," she said. "It doesn't feel good to know that we're not living up to those standards."

And tonight's test should be a load for the Lady Lions. The Spartans, third in conference play, are led by a formidable inside-outside duo.

Senior guard Victoria Lucas-Perry ranks among the top 10 in conference scoring per game (14.1). Complementing Lucas-Perry is one of the largest players Penn State will come across this season: 6-foot 9-inch Allyssa DeHaan. The freshman center is in the top 15 in conference scoring (12.9), fifth in rebounds (8.6) and blocked shots per game (4.63). And even more daunting -- Michigan State is 3-0 in Big Ten road games.

But Gissendanner said no matter whom the opponent is, no matter what its record, she prepares herself the same way. In some sense, that epitomizes Gissendanner. She's someone Portland called "old school."

"As far as old school, I don't know what to say to that," Gissendanner said. "I just want to win."