UK men’s basketball handed Eastern Kentucky University its third loss of the season, beating the Colonels 88-67 at home Wednesday night.

Senior Alex Poythress had a standout perfomance, scoring six of the Cats’ first 12 points in the first half. Poythress earned only his third double double of his career with 21 points and 13 rebounds.

“Coming off a loss, we tried to make a statement in this game and I tried to start early on in the game,” Poythress said. “We can bounce back from a loss.”

Twenty-four of the team’s first 25 points came from inside the paint, speaking to the strength of the guards’ ability to drive and the bigs’ abilites in the post when the Cats are struggling from beyond the arc.

“(We’ve) got to shoot a little bit better. Tyler (Ulis) and Jamal (Murray) didn’t shoot it particularly well, but I’m not too worried about it. I’m more worried about us, how we’re playing,” head coach John Calipari said.

Toughness continues to plague this UK team, whether it is turnovers from guards or weakness in the post, the Cats need to get stronger both physically and mentally.

“I was disappointed in turnovers,” Calipari said. “We had 17 turnovers. Four from Jamal, four from Marcus Lee, three from Skal Labissiere. I mean, come on. Most of that is just being tough with the ball, making easy plays.”

Marcus Lee impressed despite the turnovers in the second half by coming up with big dunks and rebounds amid a 10-0 EKU run that cut the Cats’ lead in half.

“In the first half he wasn’t particularly (good). (He) did well and in the second half, he played. I thought he blocked balls, he came up with rebounds,” Calipari said. “I even liked the fact Skal blocked somebody out so that the other guy could go get the ball.”

Lee had not practiced for the majority of the week after a head injury suffered during the UCLA game, but came back to shoot 5-5 from the field.

Sophomore Tyler Ulis is also still recovering from an injury to his elbow that seemed to affect his shooting ability and confidence driving in the paint.

“(Ulis’) arms are still bothering him,” Calipari said. “It was his right arm. There are times he doesn’t want to make that shot. We’re telling him, look, you’ve got to shoot it, whether you’re making it or not, because if they’re not playing people, it’s the only thing can you do.”

Injuries and inexperience have forced extremely high expectations to face reality.

“We’re still ways away, folks,” Calipari said.