How badly did Rene Portland want to salvage something from Penn State's loss to Michigan last night in Ann Arbor?

The Lady Lions' head coach called a timeout with five tenths of a second remaining, not so much as to change the final margin as to see if any signs of life were left in her troops.

There weren't many, as No. 13 Penn State (11-5, 3-2 Big Ten) came out flat on the road for the second straight game, bowing 71-62 to the unranked Wolverines at Crisler Arena.

LeeAnn Bies led all scorers with 21 points and 11 rebounds. The sophomore center notched 20 of those points in the first half as Michigan (9-6, 2-3) built a nine-point mid-way advantage.

"We played with effort, we played with energy," Michigan women's basketball coach Sue Guevara said in a press release. "Not only with defense, but also with rebounds. I am incredibly pleased with the way this team played tonight."

Junior guard Alayne Ingram added 14 points for the Wolverines, who shot 51 percent from the field and had a 47-33 edge on the boards.

Penn State, which turned the ball over 23 times in a loss at Illinois on Sunday, cut that number almost in half last night.

But although they took much better care of the basketball, the Lions could not overcome a dismal 33 percent shooting performance.

"It was a disappointing loss," Portland told WRSC Radio. "The kids really wanted it."

Senior guard Lisa Shepherd led Penn State with 20 points, despite playing the entire game with a splint on her shooting thumb.

Freshman Kelly Mazzante added 17, but no other Lion reached double figures.

Penn State will try to snap its two-game slump Sunday afternoon, as the 12-3 Indiana Hoosiers and new coach Kathi Bennett come to town.

"We just have to get back to work," Portland said. "It's early enough in the season that we can respond."

The Lions will have to play better interior defense Sunday, or Hoosiers center Jill Chapman will do to Penn State what Bies did last night. Penn State will also have to find a way to pick up its intensity. Although the season is still young, a third straight conference loss would be a major setback for the Lions.

"We have to do a lot of soul searching, from top to bottom," Portland said.