Earlier in the week, Penn State women's basketball head coach Rene Portland said she was concerned about the prospects of a letdown performance by her team this weekend. The Lady Lions had a week off following last Sunday's win over Michigan, and Portland said that in recent years her teams have not played well after being idle for that long.

The Lions made Portland's predictions come true yesterday as they fell to Michigan State (12-6, 2-5 Big Ten), 66-62, in East Lansing. Penn State (11-8, 3-3 Big Ten) squandered a one-point lead with 1:14 left in the game and gave the Spartans their second straight conference victory.

"We had some problems inside," Portland said on WMAJ-1450. "Rashana (Barnes) was in foul trouble, but we didn't play a good game, to be honest."

Michigan State's box-and-one defense was able to hold sophomore captain Kelly Mazzante in check. The nation's leading scorer tallied just nine points, marking only the second time this season she has been held below double figures in scoring. All of Mazzante's points came from beyond the three-point line.

"I think there was some frustration on Kelly's part," Portland said. "They were tough, but she's seen it all year."

Junior forward Syreeta Bromfield led the Spartans with 18 points. The Kingston, Jamaica native pulled down seven rebounds, and Michigan State led in that category 37-32. The Spartans were also helped by scoring from their freshmen, as first-year players Kristin Haynie, Joy Johnson and Kelli Roehrig combined for 32 points.

With the Spartans' defensive attention focused on Mazzante, Lions' freshman guard Tanisha Wright was able notch a team-high 16 points and nine rebounds.

"She had some great penetration, and she can shoot off a dribble," Portland said of Wright's play. "But I think she could have even given us more. I guess she was just so surprised that she was open."

The Lions were hurt by a relatively poor showing from Mazzante, who had been averaging 26.2 points per game going into the contest. Forward Jess Brungo also turned in a less-than-stellar performance and shot just 1-10 from the field. After Barnes fouled out for the eighth time this season with 4:42 remaining, Brungo replaced her and committed some crucial errors as the game ended.

Brungo was able to give the Lions a late 62-61 advantage on two foul shots. But after a field goal by the Spartans' Roehrig and a subsequent turnover by Penn State, Brungo committed a reach-in foul on Haynie. The freshman hit one foul shot to give Michigan State a two-point lead with just 10 seconds remaining. Then, Brungo's inbound pass to Mazzante for a potential buzzer-beater was taken away by Haynie, who was again fouled and made both free throws to seal the game for the Spartans.