[See how the Lady Lions spent Tournament Eve. Click here for more photos]
It's Tournament Eve and the Lady Lions are getting ready for their biggest game of the year. As head coach Rene Portland says, come Tournament time, everyone is 0-0 with an equal shot at the title. Penn State's first challenge comes against Wisconsin Thursday at 3 p.m. Fans can catch the game on FSN-Pitt and Comcast Chicago. But before the team laced up its sneakers, it had some important business to attend to on Wednesday afternoon and evening:
3:00 p.m. The team charter takes off from State College airport. It's a full house with a big travel party of supporters, including Athletic Director Tim Curley, Senior Woman Administrator Sue Scheetz and former administrator Ellen Perry.
5:00 p.m. The plane lands in Indianapolis, hometown of star shooting guard Adrienne Squire. The Lady Lions are hoping Squire feeds off the hometown spirit with some big play come Thursday. Squire will have dozens of supporters on hand, and one thing is for sure: they will be cheering as loud as anyone.
5:27 p.m. The team bus pulls into K-Mart for some snacks. All the Lady Lions load up on goodies for the week, especially since they plan on sticking around for awhile. Rene Portland calls these stops "game show," because she tells the players to get off the bus, get their snacks and hit the checkout line as fast as they can, like a game show.
6:30 p.m. Everyone meets downstairs in the lobby of the Omni Hotel. The hotel is located mere blocks from Conseco Arena, and is the team's regular hotel for this tournament. The lobby is filled with Big Ten signs and a giant projector has the Nittany Lion logo lit up on one of the walls. Members of the staff brought their kids, and point guard Brianne O'Rourke had some fun with Director of Basketball Operations Linda Strauss's son Clark. After some discussion, the team decides to hit the mall for dinner and shopping on the way.
8:30 p.m. Dinner is over and it's time to get serious by watching film. Associate head coach Annie Troyan directs the film sessions, which she says are crucial to the team's preparation. The last time Penn State and Wisconsin squared off, the Badgers got the best of the Lady Lions, so Troyan made sure to break down that game. The Lady Lions left the session feeling prepared for Thursday's game.
11:00 p.m. Lights out! It's time for a good night sleep to rest up for the next day's new experiences. Only Amanda Brown has seen action in the Big Ten Tournament, so playing on Conseco's floor will be a new experience for just about everyone.