‘They made us pay for it.’ Lack of defensive composure defines Kentucky’s first loss.

Within the opening 10 minutes of Kentucky’s first test of the college basketball season, a weakness for the Wildcats was identified, exposed and taken advantage of.

Indiana junior forward Mackenzie Holmes, an All-Big Ten First Team selection last season, scored IU’s first 11 points of the game, 13 of Indiana’s 20 first-quarter points and asserted herself around the basket against the limited frontcourt personnel possessed by Kentucky.

By the time Holmes’ initial scoring spree ended, Kentucky’s only two leads of the game had come and gone.

The eighth-ranked Hoosiers would score 44 points in the paint Sunday night at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in an 88-67 win over No. 13 Kentucky, reflecting a key area in which the Wildcats need improvement.

UK only has three recognized frontcourt players on its roster this season and one of them — sophomore forward Nyah Leveretter — is out for an undetermined amount of time due to a non-COVID illness.

As such, forward Dre’una Edwards and center Olivia Owens are the only traditional post players left at head coach Kyra Elzy’s disposal, along with oversized guards Treasure Hunt and Rhyne Howard who can play in post roles.

The result of this against an elite player and a well-drilled IU squad that made the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight last season was clear: The 6-foot-3 Holmes finished the game with 29 points to lead all scorers on 11-of-15 shooting from the field, in addition to a perfect 6-for-6 showing from the foul line to help gain revenge for IU after last year’s loss in Lexington.

“It’s great to have a post player, a low-block player like Mack who puts so much pressure on the other team,” IU head coach Teri Moren said after her Hoosiers improved to 2-0.

“Our game plan was to bring the double (on Holmes). We did not push her out. I thought we let her get too deep in the paint which were easy scoring opportunities for her,” Elzy said afterward from inside the bowels of the famed college basketball venue. “At the end of the day we weren’t physical enough, too deep in the paint and she made us pay.”

In general, a lack of focus and execution on the defensive end was a glaring takeaway for Kentucky, which allowed its most points in a game (88) since February 2020, before Elzy was the head coach.

The Wildcats, a team that prides itself on fast and frenetic defending that forces turnovers and generates offense from them, was easily beat in transition throughout Sunday’s game.

And while plenty of Hoosiers were able to speed past the Wildcats or slip in behind the defense for easy points, the threat of UK taking the ball away wasn’t strong enough, either. Kentucky (2-1) forced just 14 IU turnovers and scored only 12 points off them.

“Our transition defense, we just didn’t get it set . . . a lot of the problem is we didn’t sprint back and they made us pay for it today,” Elzy said.

“That just comes back to lack of focus because we’re supposed to be getting back on misses, but a lot of times we were just hassling the rebounder and just watching them run down the floor,” senior guard Rhyne Howard added.

“Once we get out of the press we have to continue to have that same energy that we use in the press and get back into ‘five’ or get back into the ‘two-three’ that we were calling,” Howard said, referencing Kentucky’s defensive sets. “I feel like the transition is where it started going wrong because they were just pounding it in.”

Holmes’ 29-point outing represented the third time this season that UK has allowed an opposing player to score 21 or more points in a game.

North Alabama sophomore guard Macey Lee scored 21 on 50% shooting against UK on Thursday night and in an exhibition game on Nov. 4, senior guard Haley Schubert of NCAA Division II Lee University scored 28 points against Kentucky.

“Defensively, we just have to take more pride and we have to remain composed and we have to remain disciplined and trust our help, trust our rotation and trust our defensive system,” Elzy said.

In the build-up to Sunday’s game, Elzy spoke of the importance of having a measuring-stick moment against high-quality opposition, and using the experience from it to reveal things about her team.

So after a 21-point rivalry loss in front of the largest road crowd (5,394 people) Kentucky has played in front of since February 2020, what did Elzy take away?

“They exposed some of our weakness that we can go back as a staff and a team and learn from. One of them is finishing our defense with a box out. Two, we have to play defense without fouling. We gave them way too many free throws and then just settle in offensively,” Elzy said, referencing the 24 team fouls committed by UK on Sunday.

And for Howard, who is looking to advance past the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in her final season at UK?

“Defensive intensity. Just staying together, tough environment, tough crowd and we’re all we got,” said Howard, who led Kentucky with 23 points. “So we just have to stay together and just play like we know how to play.”

Next game

Winthrop at Kentucky

When: 2 p.m. Sunday

Live video broadcast: SEC Network Plus (online only)