There will be no such thing as dipping those Lady Lion toes in the proverbial water this season.

No chance to ease into the deep end and get all nice and comfortable. With the schedule that the Penn State women's basketball team has, there is no option of a warm-up game.

How bout a little dose of Texas, Athlon's No. 1 team, in Texas for the season opener Nov. 14? That game will be aired on ESPN2 as part of the State Farm Tip-Off Classic. If that doesn't go down so smoothly, the Lions will travel to No. 9 Duke on Nov. 19 to wash it down.

Before 2004 turns into 2005, Penn State will play five top-10 teams in the Athlon poll. And coach Rene Portland loves it.

"It's a great schedule," she said.

She can't get enough of it.

"I just think it's a great schedule and it really is made out of true respect for the players that we have on this team because we know they can do it," Portland added.

Portland exudes the confidence that her team will need if it is to open up with monster games on the road. After playing in Duke on a Friday, the team will travel to Philadelphia to play a Villanova team two days later.

Then in December, No. 5 North Carolina visits the Bryce Jordan Center on the 5th, and No. 8 Ohio State comes to town Dec. 30. Sandwiched in between are two huge Big 12 battles with No. 10 Baylor (Dec. 11) and No. 14 Texas Tech (Dec. 21).

The Big Ten's all-time leading scorer, Kelly Mazzante, is gone. Jess Brungo is gone. Seniors Tanisha Wright and Jess Strom are ready to lead, but the team as a whole will not have much time to learn its new identity.

"Those first three games are gonna be incredible," sophomore guard Jen Harris said. "We want to come out and show that just because we lost Kelly and Brungo it doesn't really mean that we're not good. We're still a very good team and it's all about proving that."

Penn State is ranked No. 21 in Athlon, as the AP poll won't come out until November. Currently four Big Ten teams are ranked higher than the Lions. In the preseason conference rankings, the coaches did not have Penn State in the top three.

The expectations are not high for the two-time Big Ten champions. With a brutal schedule early, Portland believes that it will be the perfect test before Big Ten play rolls around.

"We're gonna hang our hats on our great non-conference schedule that we are going to play," Portland said. "I don't think there is a team that plays that night-in and night-out. For us to open the way we are, the way we are going to prepare -- we're going to work hard."

Last season the Lions lost only one regular season Big Ten game and came a game short of reaching the Final Four. Practice opened this past Saturday, giving them a month to prepare for this year's journey.

The difference this year is that people are doubting Penn State's chances to repeat as conference champs, and with reason.

The departures of Mazzante and Brungo leave the scoring slot open for Wright, who was named to the preseason All-Big Ten team.

Aside from her and Strom at point guard, there are question marks all over the court. Whether or not there will be a strong enough inside presence is yet to be determined. Wright looks as though she is ready to take on the scoring burden, but is there enough help around her?

Any questions will get a rather abrupt answer the first weekend in Texas and North Carolina.

The early season tests will serve as a good barometer for the Lions to see if they're on they're way to another fine season, or what needs to be fixed fast before conference play starts.

"It's a good way to start a senior year," senior Hazel Joseph said. "It's a good test from the very beginning. I want to come back to something exciting and special when we come back to the BJC. Us being overlooked right now it would be nice to get those key wins in the beginning."

Come tournament time, the Lions' strength of schedule could equal a better RPI. They're hoping that it doesn't turn into RIP.