Stopping scorer key to game

IU guard Jill Hartman cringed when told Penn State's Kelly Mazzante had added a fade-away three-pointer to her entourage.\n"Really?" Hartman asked. "Oh my goodness."\nThe nation's leading scorer at 25.2 points per game as a sophomore guard, Mazzante continues to develop her elaborate repertoire of dazzling offense. \nShe exploded for 36 points against the Hoosiers Jan. 10, but an even more dangerous aspect of the Nittany Lions since that 62-57 Penn State win is the progress of players other than Mazzante.\nShe carried the second-place Nittany Lions (15-8, 7-3 Big Ten) with 27 points in their most recent game, a 95-62 pounding of Ohio State. But five other players scored in double figures. Point guard Jess Strom, one of the nation's leaders in assists, contributed 15 points. \nAnd senior forward Rashana Barnes added her team-leading fourth double-double (10 points, 13 rebounds). The Nittany Lions visit Assembly Hall 7 p.m. Thursday.\n"I think Penn State has changed a lot with them getting a lot more balanced scoring," IU Coach Kathi Bennett said. "Rashana Barnes is really being a threat…Tanisha Wright is fantastic off the dribble. We need to play a lot more straight up. The difference from the last game is we have to defend better against their screens."\nThe last game, the Hoosiers (11-11, 5-6 Big Ten) applied effective defense against Penn State during the first half, preventing the Nittany Lions from taking a lead. But then Penn State outscored the Hoosiers 41-29 in the second period after the Hoosiers led 28-21 at the half.\nIU pulled to within three points with 19 seconds remaining. Forward Erin McGinnis took the final shot, an uncontested three-pointer, but Mazzante grabbed the rebound and was fouled. She completed two free throws to seal the win at the Bryce Jordan Center. \nCenter Jill Chapman led IU with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Only four players scored for IU, as the Hoosiers were outrebounded 44-35.\nMazzante and Wright, a guard, (10 points) were the only Nittany Lions to score in double figures. But Wright has especially picked up her game in Big Ten play, averaging 10.2 points after scoring 5.9 during the preseason.\nStrom provides the biggest support, averaging 11.25 points in Penn State's last four wins over Ohio State, Wisconsin and Northwestern twice. One of six freshmen on the roster, Strom faces Heather Cassady at the point.\n"We have a young group and we don't know who's going to show up when...(Indiana) they're an older group," assistant coach Annie Troyan said. "They've got Chapman who poses problems on the inside because we've been up and down on the inside."\nIU's defense focuses on Mazzante, who went 11-of-25 from the floor and 12-of-13 from the free-throw line in the last matchup. Guard Tara Jones will start against Mazzante.\n"Every girl is going to know where she is," Hartman said. "Like if she's in your area, you're more on her than your girl. We just have to really tighten up on her."\nBennett compared the 6-foot Mazzante to former Southwest Missouri State star Jackie Stiles, the leading scorer in NCAA history, except Mazzante tends to post up more. \n"She's one of the best guards in the country," Bennett said. "She's so complete. She can shoot off the dribble. She can get to the rim. She can shoot off a screen with no dribble, and then from standstill in transition."\nPenn State leads the conference in scoring defense (62.9 points) and scoring margin (12 points). The Nittany Lions own a 5-2 series advantage at Assembly Hall. IU's last win over Penn State was a 58-55 decision Feb. 8, 1998.