Hoosiers hope for revenge

The odds are stacked against the women's basketball team when it takes on No. 15 Penn State 7:30 p.m. today in Assembly Hall.\nNot only are the Hoosiers 0-3 against ranked teams this season, that list includes Penn State. The Lady Lions handed IU its worst defeat of the season, 89-68, 11 days ago.\n"Penn State is the best team I've coached against," coach Kathi Bennett said after the loss. "We played hard, but their size really hurt us."\nPenn State has seen strong performances from each of its starters this season. All five scored in double figures against IU.\nBut the biggest performance came from freshman Kelly Mazzante, a Big Ten Freshman of the Year candidate, who shredded the IU defense for 23 points in State College.\n"She's fun to watch, and a pleasure to work with," Penn State coach Rene Portland said. "We literally have to pull her off the court, because she wants to be out there all the time."\nWhile Penn State has a freshman leading the team in scoring, IU's three freshmen don't even combine to score 17 points per game, Mazzante's average.\nAlthough the make-up of both teams appears similar -- both are playing with three freshmen -- the ways in which each team uses its young guns are different. \nMazzante is averaging more than 28 minutes per game, compared to freshman Anna Waugh's 20. Waugh leads the Hoosier freshmen with 6.8 points per game. \n"I really like what I saw from (Waugh) at the Wisconsin game," Bennett said. "She's really starting to come back and we are going to need her against Penn State. We played good basketball when she's playing very well, and I am excited about the progress she's made."\nWaugh scored 17 points in her Hoosier debut in November, but has had a roller coaster ride since. The 5-foot-8 guard scored in double digits in her first two Big Ten games, but hasn't been able to reach double digits since a Dec. 31 win against Michigan State. Waugh went scoreless in 14 minutes of play in the Hoosiers' last contest, a 69-62 loss at Wisconsin.\n"It's harder (to score) than I thought," Waugh said. "It's more difficult mentally and physically. I come and go a lot. I get frustrated at myself a lot."\nFreshman Charliss Ridley started the season with much of the same fire that Waugh produced. In the first exhibition game, Ridley scored 16 points, but went scoreless in the season opener against Washington. Her regular season scoring high is 12.\n"Charliss is struggling a bit right now," Bennett said. "But I know that she is a competitor, and she will bounce back."\nNicole Motto rounds out the freshman class. The 5-foot-5 guard, with a great jump shot and a promising future, has been out for three weeks with mononucleosis. \n"It's very difficult for me to sit and watch any time, let alone not being physically able to play," Motto said. "It's hard to have mono, because I feel fine."\nMotto has been watching the Hoosiers as they prepare for the Penn State game this week in practice. The Hoosiers have been working on their transition game, shot selection and ball handling.\n"This week has been intense," Motto said. "I think we are ready. The last Penn State game deserves revenge, so I think we are ready for that."\n"We beat ourselves last time. I don't think a team takes us out (of) things. We have to play hard, and stay together as a team no matter what is happening on and off the court"