(photo courtesy Fighting Irish Athletics)

(Notre Dame) — Notre Dame’s women’s basketball team has relied heavily on its backcourt all season.

For the second straight game, that unit was outperformed…and for the second straight game, the Irish lost.

24th-ranked Florida State rallied from 15 points down in the first half to down the third-ranked Irish, 86-81, before a stunned crowd at Purcell Pavilion. The loss drops the Irish to 24-4 overall and a first-place tie with NC State  in the ACC at 15-2.

Notre Dame came out shooting well and when Liatu King hit a pair of buckets early in the second quarter, the Irish had a 29-14 lead.  Florida State bounced back from a frigid first quarter to drill 6-of-8 threes in the second over Notre Dame’s zone defense. Meanwhile, the Irish shooting cooled and the visitors held a 44-40 lead at the break.

Irish coach Niele Ivey switched to a man-to-man defense in the second half, and while that kept FSU’s three-point performance under control, it allowed the faster Seminoles easy paths to the basket. The nation’s leading scorer, Florida State’s Ta’niya Latson was the biggest beneficiary, racking up points on free throws and layups to put her squad up 67-57 after three.

Notre Dame opened the fourth quarter on a 9-0 run, keyed primarily by Sonia Citron who finished with a team-high 21 points. But Makayla Timpson, who was a force inside all night with 22 points and 17 rebounds, hit a pair of back-to-back jumpers to end the Irish spurt, and the Seminoles were never threatened after that.

Florida State, now 23-6 over all and 13-4 in ACC play, records its first women’s basketball win ever in South Bend.

Meanwhile, the Irish look for answers in a shooting slump, particularly Hannah Hidalgo. The All-American guard followed an 8-26 shooting performance at NC State with a 4-18 outing in this one.

The Irish close the regular season at home Sunday at Purcell Pavilion against Louisville. ESPN’s College Game Day will be on hand, preceding the noon tipoff.