Elbows were thrown, there were textbook box-outs, and some bodies even hit the floor.

Not all of the preceding aggressiveness happened in yesterday's game, but it did happen before the tip off, in the rush among the 10,000 fans waiting in line to get their hands on a Kelly Mazzante bobblehead doll.

The afternoon giveaway for the fans to recognize Penn State's prolific guard was overshadowed by the play of her teammate, Jess Strom, in addition to victory.

A starter at the beginning of the season, Strom lost her job after lackluster showings against Wisconsin and Louisiana State. Over the last couple of weeks, Strom has come off the bench, a role that came full circle with a 24-point performance yesterday.

"She's a nice guard, she's very pesky," Michigan State women's basketball coach Joanne McCallie said. "I thought she gave them a great lift. As a matter of fact, I think she's the X-factor. Without that game, I think the game is a different outcome."

Strom led all scorers with her mark of 24, which is a career high for the sophomore. In addition, her five three-pointers were a new personal best.

Despite not starting for the past few games, Strom said she felt confident. Her mentality for the contest against the Spartans was to just go out and play like she had nothing to prove.

"[There was] not anything that I don't have to prove in any other game," Strom said. "I haven't started a couple games and I think it's just normal coming off the bench."

With the Lions up by only one point, the game was capped off for Strom yesterday during the closing 30 seconds, where the Lions saw the Spartans mounting a final offensive. In that time, Strom had two steals and sank four foul shots to seal the win.

"[The steals] were just big time," Penn State women's basketball coach Rene Portland said.

The first steal came when she helped in a double team and stripped Kelli Roehrig right in front of the Penn State basket. The 6-foot-4 Roehrig gave the Lions trouble all day with her size, and led the Spartans with 17 points. Like Strom, Roehrig came off the bench to lead her team in scoring.

"Usually I don't guard the point guard or the quickest person," Strom said. "So I think I have a chance to anticipate a lot of things because I'm off the ball."

The exclamation point was added with Strom's second steal, which came shortly after, when the Lions' press forced Kristin Haynie into the turnover.

Yesterday's win gave the Penn State women's basketball team their fifth win of the season in the Big Ten, allowing the Lions to hold onto first place in the conference. The emergence of Strom, along with teammates Jess Brungo and Tanisha Wright, was even more critical since the Spartans' defense held Mazzante to only 14 points.

However, her spot in the starting five is not quite guaranteed yet. Portland alluded that Strom still has a few things to work on in practice in order to start.

"She knows how she's getting her starting spot back," Portland said.