Alex Bentley and Nicole Arcidiacono shared a look of uncertainty during Tuesday's Women's National Invitation Tourn-ament press conference.
When asked how familiar they were with their next opponent, the two looked at each other, nodded their heads left to right and laughed.
"We have film in a couple minutes, so we'll find out," Arcidiacono joked.
The Lady Lions learned late Monday night they'd play their first-round game in the WNIT at 7 tonight. It didn't give Penn State (17-13, 8-10 Big Ten) a lot of time to plan for tonight's matchup against Hofstra, but the Lions are more worried about controlling their own play than something Hofstra (19-13, 11-7 CAA) might throw at them.
"Defense, rebounding, getting out and scoring in transition," Coquese Washington said, were the points of emphasis during her team's practices. "And competing -- that's a big thing. Competing and playing hard the whole time we're on the floor. And quite honestly, those are the kinds of things you have to work on when you don't know who you're playing."
Washington said she started watching film on Hofstra Monday night but said she didn't have too much tape to analyze. Because the Pride weren't on television often and because most conferences don't allow conference-game films to be sent out for scouting purposes, she watched games from earlier in the season.
What the third-year coach saw on those couple tapes was enough for her to come to the conclusion Hofstra is a "scrappy, hard-nosed team."
And one of the main reasons why Washington came to this understanding is because of Hofstra's freshman Shante Evans.
"She's kind of like Star Allen that played at Ohio State last year," Washington said of the 6-foot forward. "Maybe an undersized post player, but she makes up for what she lacks in size with aggressiveness and with assertiveness ... She's tough and physical on the block."
The Lions hope some of the time they had off after the Big Ten tournament will allow them to feel rested enough to be as physical as the Pride. While Bentley said the rest was nice for her physically, mentally she is hungry to play in her first post-season collegiate tournament.
"It helps you to get hype and get ready for tournament time," Bentley said of the time off. "But being away from basketball you know, you miss it. So I'm ready to go."
