At this point in the season, records mean very little.
Strength of schedule combined with record truly shows the quality of a team.
The unbeaten Ohio State women's basketball team stands atop the Big Ten standings while the preseason favorites have all suffered at least one loss.
The Buckeyes (5-0) have faced no real challenges, with their toughest test coming against Cleveland State. Other teams, such as No. 5 Purdue (8-1), No. 13 Penn State (4-3) and No. 25 Wisconsin (4-3) all have suffered losses to top-15 opponents.
"They're (the Buckeyes) surprising me by their non-conference schedule," Penn State women's basketball coach Rene Portland said."It's unfortunate. They could come along and give us the greatest game and possibly even beat us on New Year's Eve."
Ohio State was not the only school with which Portland was upset.
"I'm really disappointed with some of the conference schools and their non-conference scheduling," she said.
"This year, we actually had a Division I committee member talk to us about scheduling as a conference to help the conference RPI.
"People asked me this morning, 'What's the difference in the league?' And, I said 'Non-conference game scheduling.'It's too dramatic in the league this year. You look at Illinois, ourselves and Wisconsin and you tell us we're all nuts."
High-scoring freshman
When most freshmen move into a top-25 program, starting is usually not on their minds.
However, just three games into the season, Lions freshman Kelly Mazzante had impressed Portland enough to get the starting nod.
She is the Lions second leading scorer, torching opposing defenses for 16.7 points per game. She is also the Lions best shooter from the field, shooting 56 percent from the floor.
"Kelly has given us some terrific minutes on both ends of the floor," Portland said. "She has an opportunity to be one of the best in our conference so this is a great way for her to get started."
Mazzante has stepped up to replace injured senior Chrissy Falcone in the outside game, connecting on a team-high 15 three-pointers this season, shooting 44 percent from behind the arc.
On the horizon
The Lady Lions have eight games during finals week and Christmas break.
Of those games the final four are important as they mark the start of the Big Ten season. Sunday, the Lions host No. 24 Vanderbilt, then travel to Pittsburgh before returning to the friendly confines of The Bryce Jordan Center to host UC-Santa Barbara and LaSalle to round out their non-conference slate.
Then, Dec. 28, Minnesota pays a visit to Happy Valley to start the Big Ten season. The Lions will spend New Year's Eve in Columbus, Ohio, taking on the Buckeyes. After the New Year, the Lions face Northwestern at home on Jan. 4, and travel to Champaign, Ill., to face the Fighting Illini on Jan. 7.
