At first glance, the numerical evidence on the stat sheet appeared too staggering to be true.

Had Michigan women's basketball coach Kevin Borseth not seen it for himself, he may not have believed it.

But the problem was, Borseth had a front-row seat for every shot visiting Penn State hit during an 81-63 victory over the Wolverines Thursday night at Crisler Arena.

That brings us back to the numbers - or more specifically, the 67-percent offensive success rate the Nittany Lions found in the second half.

"They hit a lot of shots," guard Courtney Boylan said. "I've never played against a team that hit 67 percent in the second half."

Until now.

Michigan (13-9, 6-4 Big Ten) couldn't match Penn State's hot-handed success, including in the final 20 minutes when the Nittany Lions were a remarkable 19-for-28 from the field.

Penn State led by 11 points at halftime and never eased up, blending the inside presence of 6-foot-4 sophomore center Nikki Green with the silky outside touch of freshman guard Maggie Lucas.

Lucas led all scorers with 23 points and was one of five Penn State scorers who reached double figures.

All night, it was clear the first-place Nittany Lions were simply too much for a Michigan team trying to regain its footing after a disappointing loss to last-place Minnesota last weekend.

"It seemed to me like we were stuck in the mud," Borseth said. "They just did whatever they wanted to on the offensive end of the floor. They hit a lot of shots, obviously."

For Michigan, the shots were there. They just weren't falling.

The Wolverines had plenty of open looks - including a plethora from the perimeter, where Michigan offered up 23 attempts. But only eight of the Wolverines' 3-point attempts found their mark, keeping Michigan from ever making a serious run at Penn State.

Michigan connected on 53 percent of its second-half field goal attempts, but couldn't overcome an opening 20 minutes when the Wolverines were 11-of-31 and 3-for-11 on 3-point attempts.

"We had shots - we just didn't make them," Borseth said. "In a game like this right here, you have to score 80 points because they can score."

Penn State (19-5, 8-2 Big Ten) averages 80 points a game - a mark the Nittany Lions reached in their latest win. Michigan, which was hoping to make up ground on the Big Ten lead, just didn't have enough firepower to do so.

Rachel Sheffer led Michigan with 13 points while Boylan and Veronica Hicks each chipped in with 10. The Wolverines, who a week ago upset six-time defending league champion Ohio State for the second time this season, have now lost two straight heading into Sunday's home date with Illinois.

While Borseth's players weren't convinced Thursday's loss had much to do with the setback against Minnesota, they realize they can't afford to slip up much more.

"I don't think anyone was thinking about (the Minnesota loss) - if anything, we were hoping to use that as motivation to get back on the winning trail," Hicks said. "But we just need to get back in the gym and get our confidence back."

Jeff Arnold covers Michigan sports for AnnArbor.com and can be reached at (734) 623-2554 or by e-mail at jeffarnold@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @jeffreyparnold.