CHAMPAIGN – A senior, Ann Henderson is old enough to remember when second semester meant second division in the Big Ten for the University of Illinois women's basketball team.

Now the schedule's out of whack. Classes resume Tuesday and the Illini are a game out of first place.

"In years past when January rolls around, we're fighting to stay out of the bottom of the barrel, fighting to stay out of 10th and 11th place," Henderson said. "Now it's nice to be fighting for first place. It's a great feeling.

"You can see the difference in people's faces and emotions and how they carry themselves. It's pride."

Six games into the Big Ten sprint, Illinois is with the lead pack. After last weekend's road split at Minnesota and Michigan, the Illini are 4-2 and tied with Purdue for second. They are sandwiched by Michigan State, 5-1, and a trio of 3-2 teams (Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa).

"It's going to be a free-for-all," UI coach Theresa Grentz said. "To win it is going to come down to taking care of games on your home floor and getting a split on the road at best."

So far, so good for Illinois, 2-2 on the road with an upset of then 16th-ranked Wisconsin. Friday night, the Illini cap a four-game swing at Penn State, which has yet to lose a Big Ten game at home and is 5-0 all-time against the Illini in State College, Pa.

The Nittany Lions are 8-5, with three losses coming to top 15 teams. They had lost five consecutive games before beating Indiana last Friday.

"A few games just doesn't make the season," Grentz said. "(Penn State) is a very, very good team."

In the Big Ten's preseason coaches poll, Penn State was picked to finish third, behind first-place Iowa and second-place Wisconsin. None of the teams currently is in the top three.

Illinois was picked sixth.

"It's nice to be the ones doing the stomping," said Henderson. "Teams seem dumbfounded when we come out and get on top and get them down. You can see the look in their eyes. It's like, 'I can't believe this is Illinois.'

"To us, it's a a great feeling."

Henderson is 1 of 9 Illini playing more than 11 minutes a game. The deep rotation has accounted for a deluge of points, Illinois ranking as the Big Ten's best offense (83.1 points a game) despite only two players scoring in double figures (Ashley Berggren, Alicia Sheeler).

"(Good) players have a way of making you look smart," Grentz said.

Smart enough to win a Big Ten title?

The Illini have never done that. Their best finish was third in 1985-86, and they've wound up in the conference's second division the last nine seasons.

"If you ask me, I think we're going to win a national championship," Grentz said. "But I have to be realistic. I can't skip a step or we'll fall apart."