It is no longer a question of when Kelly Mazzante will eclipse the record, but at what point in tonight's game she will do so.

The No. 13 Penn State women's basketball team (18-5, 8-1 Big Ten) travels to face Illinois (13-6, 5-4) tonight at 8 at Assembly Hall.

The game will give the Lady Lions a chance to increase their lead in the Big Ten, but it will also give Mazzante, the nation's fourth-leading scorer an opportunity to become the first junior in the history of the conference to reach the 2,000-point plateau.

Mazzante is just six points shy of the magic number, and the Fighting Illini figure to have a small chance of holding her to that. Defending Mazzante in general is their grave concern.

"I think Kelly is coming in doing her thing," said Illinois women's basketball coach Theresa Grentz, a former college teammate of Lions head coach Rene Portland.

"There's a lot of different ways you can handle it, you can decide not to let her touch the ball, you can trap her, or you can let them play. I'm not going to reveal that plan."

Aside from Mazzante, another factor working to the Lions' advantage is the fact that these two teams seem to be mirror images of one another. The Illini have been playing a three-guard offense of late, and the Lions have been using a four-guard offense all season. Both teams have five players averaging over 8.8 points per game.

The differences lie in the fact that the Illini are a deeper unit, but the Lions appear to have a rare size advantage. Grentz admitted she is concerned about the Lions' ability to rebound, and the production from sources not named Mazzante.

The Lions will be playing without the services of starting center Ashli Schwab, who continues to nurse her tibia injury. Portland said she has been cleared to start "doing things, but not necessarily [to] play."

Even without her, the Lions have done quite well.

Hazel Joseph has filled in more than admirably, especially over the last two games, averaging over seven points and nine rebounds per outing. She has proven that she can be a efficient if not extraordinary player in the post for the Lions.

Things haven't been easy for Joseph or the Lions, for that matter, when it comes to playing away from Happy Valley.

The Lions are a mere 5-5 on the road, and the Illini have only dropped one game on their home floor. Tonight will almost definitely be a historic one for Mazzante, as she looks to join the 2,000-point club, while the Lions will just be looking for their conference-leading ninth Big Ten victory of the season.