No matter how ugly it may be, a win is still a win.

But unfortunately for Penn State, all it ended up being was a very ugly loss.

The Big Ten-leading No. 12 Penn State women's basketball team (22-6, 12-2) was upset 80-75 at the hands of Iowa (13-10, 5-7) yesterday afternoon in Iowa City in what was arguably one of the team's most sluggish performances of the season.

"I'm not sure how prepared we were for this game," Penn State women's basketball coach Rene Portland said on the Penn State radio network. "The mistakes we made were the mistakes we shouldn't have made. We just need to go home and regroup."

The day did not start off well for the Lady Lions, as they missed their initial three shots of the game. It was a sign of things to be, as poor overall shot selection, combined with 11 turnovers, put Penn State in the hole early on.

The team was also handicapped with the absence of junior Jess Brungo, who had three early fouls and spent much of the first half on the bench. This gave Penn State a difficult time matching up with the Hawkeyes inside, who capitalized on high-percentage shots.

"I hope it's just uncharacteristic decisions," Portland said. "We gave up 80 points."

By the start of the second half, all three of Penn State's post players -- Brungo, Ashli Schwab, and Hazel Joseph -- had at least two fouls apiece, allowing the Iowa inside game to aggressively attack the basket. In fact, 28 of their 44 first-half points came in the paint. Both Brungo and Tanisha Wright ended up fouling out of the game.

"I think that we're excited that we get four of our last six games at home," Iowa women's basketball coach Lisa Bluder. "I think we can end these last six games on a real high note."

In the opening five minutes of the second half, Iowa nailed 10 unanswered points, and kept Penn State scoreless for just as long. From that point on, the Hawkeyes never looked backed, and maintained the lead over the Lions for the remainder of the game. Penn State had a surge with three minutes remaining, and pulled within one, but was unable to ever pull ahead. Now the team remains ahead of Purdue by a one-game margin after the loss.

"We will keep our eyes on the Big Ten title," Portland said.

Iowa was led by Kristi Faulkner, who had a game-high 27 points and went 12-for-14 from the foul line. Kelly Mazzante led Penn State with 26 points despite going 9-for-24 and 4-for-13 from the 3-point line. Her performance, which also included seven rebounds, moved her into seventh place on the Big Ten career scoring list.