March 3, 2005

On March 8, 2004, the Big Ten Tournament final featured the top two seeds, which marked just the second time in the 10-year history of the tournament thOn March 8, 2004, the Big Ten Tournament final featured the top two seeds, which marked just the second time in the 10-year history of the tournament that has happened.

Top-seeded Penn State fell 59-58 to second-seeded Purdue in a game that for the first time in Tournament history was decided by two teams ranked in the nation's top 10. Penn State entered the final game ranked fifth in the Associated Press poll and sixth in the ESPN/USA Today coaches' poll, while Purdue was seventh in both polls.

Despite struggling from the field on 2-of-10 shooting, Purdue's Shereka Wright, who was named the Tournament's MVP, hit a pair of free throws with 4.8 seconds left and then blocked Tanisha Wright's potential winning basket at the buzzer to give the Boilermakers their second straight Tournament title. Wright and Katie Gearlds led Purdue with 15 and 14 points, respectively, while Kelly Mazzante led three Lady Lions in double figures with 22 points.

The one-point victory for Purdue marked the third straight Big Ten Tournament Final that had been decided by three points or less. The game was witnessed by a single-session record of 9,417 fans, while for the week, a Tournament record of 37,635 spectators witnessed Big Ten women's basketball at its finest.

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