It's been hard enough for No. 25 Penn State (14-8, 9-2 Big Ten) to win on the road this season, but take away one of the two essential ingredients, and it's like trying to swim without using your arms or legs.

In a 10-day span, the Lady Lions found out how hard it was to try to tread water without either Jess Strom or Tanisha Wright. Without Strom they lost a disappointing game to Northwestern on Jan. 27. On Sunday, without Wright for much of the game, they fell to Purdue.

The trend is a disturbing one as the NCAA tournament looms, taking place this year in venues away from the Bryce Jordan Center. But the problem can be traced back to the team's youth, something that was mostly hidden in the middle of the season.

"Some of them are so young, besides Jess, Ashli [Schwab] and Tanisha," Penn State associate head coach Annie Troyan said. "The rest really haven't played a whole lot ... There is a youthfulness to them that they're still trying to figure out, 'OK, I can take it here.' We see it in spurts. Certain games when Jenny [Brenden] will make a big shot and Jen Harris will take it with confidence, but there are times when they are young. They are really young. You have to give them more confidence than you do a kick in the butt."

Both times the Lady Lions were without one of their two stars for a game or a lengthy amount of time, the supporting cast has been unable to produce enough to limit a drop-off.

Last year at this point in the season, the younger players were watching games, now they're stuck right in the middle of the Big Ten madness.

"Amanda [Brown] and Jen Harris hardly played last year, and now they're a huge part," Troyan said. "They're a huge part when it means something. They weren't a huge part when it meant something last year. It's different for them, and they're trying to figure their way out."

Through the first 15 games, Harris looked as though she could be a viable scoring option, averaging 13 points per game. Since her career-high 26 points against Illinois on Jan. 13, Harris has been held to six points or fewer in four of the seven games.

Whether it's the proverbial sophomore wall or just a lack of confidence, Harris has seen both her production and her minutes drop recently. Harris and Brown are sophomores and averaged about 10 minutes per game last season.

With the games getting more and more important as the season nears its end, Penn State can't afford to rely completely on Wright and Strom to have any chance.

Strom was the only Lady Lion in double figures on Sunday, leading the team with 11 points, while Wright sat on the bench for 16 minutes due to foul trouble.

"We should be prepared for any game if that happens, if T gets in foul trouble," Strom added.