Apparently, the women's basketball team hasn't heard "Rocky Mountain High" lately.

As the Lady Lions (24-6) prepare to leave for Boulder, Colo., for their NCAA Midwest Regional game against Mississippi, they seem to be unaware of the atmosphere in store for them.

Colorado, known for its high altitudes and gasping denizens, should prove to be yet another new experience for Penn State as it continues its American tour.

But Penn State will have one person familiar with the thinning air -- Coach Rene Portland. She coached at Colorado from 1978-80 before coming to Penn State.

"You feel like a smoker even though you've never smoked," Portland said.

Portland's husband, John, told her that she shouldn't say anything to the players until they get there, but the coach knows that it won't matter once they hit the floor of the Coors Event Center.

"I had to laugh because if you look on the Colorado floor, printed on the floor in like 10 inch letters, right in front of the visitor's bench, is the altitude," she said. "So how can you not tell them?"

But it seems that maybe Portland will need to tell them something as some of the players forgot their freshman geography class.

"Actually, I think everyone is just happy to be going to Boulder," Carla Coleman said.

Or maybe Portland won't need to tell the team anything.

Tina Henry, who at 6-foot-5 is used to high altitudes, said she hadn't even thought about it until someone mentioned it to her yesterday.

"Maybe if I'm not aware of it then it won't affect me -- I really don't know," Henry said.

But if the Lady Lions have problems Portland will go to Plan B.

"When you can't breathe it's just mental," Portland laughed. "That's what I'm going to tell them -- 'It's in your heads."'