Penn State's 63-61 victory over Iowa on Sunday at Rec Hall may have given women's basketball fans a glimpse of what is to come in the NCAA postseason tournament. The Lady Lions' (18-0, 9-0) win over the Hawkeyes, who reached the Final Four last season, solidified their No. 1 ranking but proved that Iowa is no pushover.

"We've always had the slogan, 'No regrets in March, play like a champion today,' " Penn State Coach Rene Portland said. "That's been in our locker room for 13 years and last year after being in the Big Ten, I ripped that sign down and put up 'Don't get to March and ask for a second chance.' "

However, the two teams, which were selected to finish 1-2 in the coaches' preseason poll, played the game like a championship was on the line. And despite the No. 8 Hawkeyes' (14-3, 7-2) third-place showing in conference standings, they indicated they are slowly coming together as a team, despite the departure of Tia Jackson.

The 6-foot senior forward will miss the entire season after having surgery on Jan. 20 to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her knee. She averaged 13.5 points and 5.9 rebounds per game last season and was a preseason All-America selection.

"I think in this league, anybody that loses 45 percent of its scoring (with the graduation of All-American Toni Foster and point guard Laurie Aaron), then turns around and loses a Tia, initially you drop back and say 'Are we going to be there again?' " Iowa Coach C. Vivian Stringer said.

"People have a lot of expectations, and then you start to struggle quite a bit -- 'How are you going to get it done?' People will see what the Iowa Hawkeyes are all about," Stringer said. "We're not losers. Come March-time, we don't fear anybody."

Residing in their customary position at the basement of the conference standings is Michigan (3-15, 0-9). Coach Trish Roberts has only seven players on her active roster, including five freshmen.

Although it may seem like the Wolverines are at rock bottom, that certainly is not the case. They have failed to win a conference game, but already have improved on last season's 2-25 overall record.

Leading the Wolverines in scoring are a pair of 5-foot-11 freshmen forwards, Silver Shellman and Amy Johnson, who combine for nearly 26 points per game. Shellman (13.5 ppg, 40 steals) is the niece of Roberts and hails from her hometown of Monroe, Ga.

Another frosh, point guard Jennifer Kiefer, leads the conference with a .479 three-point field-goal percentage and is tied for fourth with 5.1 assists per game.

Now that the foundation is set, it's only a matter of time before the Wolverines ascend from the bottom.

Penn State at Purdue (7:30 p.m. Friday at Mackey Arena).

This game pits the Big Ten's first- and second-place teams against each other for a battle over the conference's top spot. A victory would most likely assure the Lady Lions a Big Ten championship. A loss would leave the teams tied at 9-1.

The No. 11 Boilermakers (17-3, 8-1) are coming off victories at Indiana (13-4, 4-4), 64-52, and Wisconsin (10-8, 3-6), 77-64. Their only loss in conference play is to the Lady Lions, a 62-56 showdown at Rec Hall. Purdue is led by freshman center Leslie Johnson (18.6 ppg, 9.4 rpg) and a pair of juniors, point guard Jennifer Jacoby (4.8 assists) and forward Cindy Lamping.