Hoosiers fall to Penn St.

IU's 79-70 loss to No. 19 Penn State cut two ways Thursday night at Assembly Hall.\nAlong with the Hoosiers dropping their third consecutive conference game and falling further back in the Big Ten standings, they lost two players for the game.\nSophomore small forward Jill Hartman and freshman forward Charliss Ridley sat out. Hartman missed the game for an academic slip-up, while Ridley is taking a one-week leave of absence from the team, Sports Information Director Shelli Stewart said.\nHartman will be back in the line-up for Sunday's 1 p.m. game against Ohio State, while Ridley's longterm status is unclear.\nCoach Kathi Bennett declined further comment about Ridley's leave of absence.\nHartman received a one-game suspension from the NCAA for not having enough class hours. Hartman scheduled 13 hours but tested out of a two-hour class, which she then dropped, leaving her with 11 hours. NCAA rules require student athletes to carry 12 hours.\nBennett said Hartman was advised incorrectly and didn't know she was doing anything wrong.\n"She was advised that she would get retro-credits," Bennett said. "She certainly didn't know what she was doing was wrong.\n"I feel terrible for her."\nRidley averages 4.5 points a game, while Hartman averages 3.9.\nPenn State soothes road woes\nLast season, a banner year by all accounts, the Lady Lions were a force on the road. In a league with the general mentality of "win at home, and go .500 on the road," Penn State was dominant. \nIt beat eventual WNIT champion Wisconsin 57-52 in front of 8,600 fans. It beat then-No. 12 Purdue in Mackey Arena with more than 9,000 Boiler fans. It smashed Iowa, and held on against Ohio State. It decimated IU and Minnesota by a combined 90 points. One Big Ten road loss marred the Lady Lions' perfect conference season. \nThis was a road team. \nBut the Lady Lions' traveling bags have seemingly stayed in the friendly confines of the Bryce Jordan Center. Penn State, with thoughts of returning to the Final Four, hasn't been as impressive on the road during this conference season (0-3). Things got a little better for Penn State in its win against IU Thursday.\n"We're happy to get a win on the road," Portland said. "In this conference it's so tough to win on the road. You want to win at home and steal one on the road. We did that tonight.\n"It was a very good basketball game tonight, and we were fortunate to get out alive."\nThe win was keyed by two runs to end the first half and start the second. Penn State erased a two-point deficit with an 8-2 run to end the first half. The Lady Lions jumped out strong to start the second, scoring the half's first eight points and grabbing a 10-point lead.\nPortland still isn't satisfied with how the Lady Lions are playing away from Happy Valley.\n"We're still not playing very well," Portland said.\nIt's just the little things about being away from home, she added.\n"There's a comfortability about playing at home," said Portland before the game. "When we're on the road, we're not playing smart basketball." \nPSU sharpshooter pushes past tough defense\nPenn State freshman guard Kelly Mazzante, leading the Lady Lions with almost 19 points a game, saw a zero in that column after the first half. It surprised everyone.\n"When she's used to scoring 32 points a game in high school, it's tough for her when she doesn't score," Portland said. "She needs to find other ways to contribute when teams take away her scoring. \n"We had a talk with her about that at halftime."\nBut rather than give in and play defense, Mazzante created shots and scored her points. The Montoursville, Pa., native scored 14 points, all in the second half.\n"She found her shot in the second half," Portland said. "If she's not Freshman of the Year in this league, I'll be shocked"