Kentucky coach Matthew Mitchell saw a good effort by his No. 8 Wildcats fall apart toward the end at Notre Dame.
Samantha Drake scored 21 points to help Kentucky stay even, but the No. 3 Irish used a late 11-0 run to hand the Wildcats their first loss of the season, 92-83 Sunday.
''When we have everyone on our team come to play, and we have a lot of good athletes and defenders on our team, what has been good for us this year is when we have been able to sustain it,'' Mitchell said. ''Usually we are able to sustain it farther than we were able to today.''
''Everyone did not play as hard as they could, so that really put us in a bad position because now you are putting people who have played extremely hard and you can't get them much of a rest before they have to go back in,'' he said.
A'dia Mathies added 17 points for Kentucky (10-1), Bria Goss had 14 and Amber Smith 13.
Notre Dame (10-1) had double doubles from Skylar Diggins (16 points, 11 assists) and Deveraux Peters (13 points, 13 rebounds) and were led in scoring by Natalie Novosel's 23 points. Kayla McBride contributed 17 and Natalie Achonwa 15.
The Wildcats' loss came after home wins over ranked opponents Louisville and Duke earlier this month. This was the first game for Samarie Walker, the transfer from Connecticut who scored seven points and had seven rebounds in 12 minutes.
Walker also got into a verbal confrontation with Peters on a scramble under the basket.
''Samarie did not keep her emotions in check and it got heated down there,'' Mitchell said. ''I don't want that happening on our team, no matter what is going on. You just don't need to lose your focus like that. I am sure she will learn from that. But we saw her move around out there. She is a good player and a good addition to our team.''
The Wildcats stayed with the Irish and led 75-74 with 5:08 remaining before Notre Dame ran off 11 straight points.
''We did not secure our defensive boards during that streak,'' Mitchell said. ''I think our team faded at that point.''
The Wildcats shot 44 percent and forced Notre Dame into 22 turnovers, 13 of which were steals. The game was played before a raucous full house, prompting Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw to call it ''one of the most entertaining games we have played here. The crowd was unbelievable and definitely contributed to the win.''
Mitchell agreed.
''What an impressive atmosphere and crowd,'' he said. ''It was a good afternoon for women's basketball and the crowd really bothered us. It took energy from our game,'' he said.
Kentucky set the tone early, forcing Notre Dame into five turnovers in the first four minutes, but the Wildcats started slowly from the field, hitting only three of their first 10 shots.
McBride scored eight of her points in the first eight minutes and ND led 16-9 with 11:37 to go in the half. The Irish led 46-40 at the break.
Drake put Kentucky ahead 71-70, but two free throws by Novosel began the decisive 11-point run.
