As the lights at the Bryce Jordan Center dimmed for the pregame player introductions yesterday, an unusual color illuminated from the shirts in the crowd.

Rather than the traditional blue and white apparel, most of the 8,808 fans in attendance wore pink for the Penn State women's basketball team's first Think Pink Day, a breast-cancer awareness event presented by the Barash Group.

"Today was a very, very special day," women's basketball head coach Rene Portland said. "We'd like to think that the basketball event was the main thing, but it wasn't. Think Pink was the main event."

To match the crowd, the Lady Lions wore pink uniforms with white and blue trim, as they defeated the Wisconsin Badgers, who wore white uniforms with pink trim. However, the day was not just a special occasion for the Lady Lions players on the court, but also a memorable day for those in the stands.

"I think it's extra special today because of the Think Pink thing," said Mary Ann Bender, 60, of Bellefonte, an usher working in section 123. "[The other ushers] were excited to show support to prevent breast cancer and to [give] an awareness to people. I have a lot of people who I know who are dealing with breast cancer now. [You're] showing your support by wearing your support and wearing pink and thinking about them and praying for them."

The day ended a month-long campaign to raise money for three separate breast cancer foundations. Official Think Pink T-shirts were sold at the Penn State Bookstore, with $5 from every sale going to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. According to Penn State women's basketball Sports Information Director Kris Petersen, $1,600 was raised for the foundation through the T-shirt sales as of Jan. 24.

The Stomp Out Breast Cancer Shoe was a fixture at the Nittany Mall for a month, collecting money from shoppers until yesterday, when it was on display after the game. The money will be donated to the Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition. Funds were also raised for the Penn State Breast Cancer Awareness Club, including a $600 donation from Portland commemorating her 600-career win at Penn State. The pink jerseys Penn State wore for the game were auctioned off afterward, and the proceeds will be spilt between the three organizations.

Student groups also got into the spirit. The Other Lady Lions, or TOLL, consisting of a handful of shirtless men with Lady Lions jerseys painted on their chests, used bright pink body paint to mimic the special jerseys the team wore for the game.

"I don't think anybody realized we would take it to the next level," Portland said. "It was really terrific all the people that got behind us. It was about awareness, and the awareness is more than obvious that we need to get a hold of [cancer]."