By Keith Taylor
Special to NKyTribune
Although he’s Kentucky’s most experienced player, Alex Poythress doesn’t mind being the sixth man.
“I’m playing fine, battling and getting rebounds,” Poythress said. “Really it doesn’t matter who starts the game. It’s who finishes. When you get in tight (and) close games, (it matters) who’s on the court at the end. Right now, I accept the role (of) coming off the bench and I’m just playing the best I can.”
Poythress came off the bench and recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds Friday night to lead the second-ranked Wildcats to a 78-63 win over Wright State.
The outing marked just the third time in his collegiate career Poythress has recorded a double-double and was his first since returning from a torn ACL that derailed his junior campaign. Poythress said he’s getting more comfortable on the floor and getting into the flow of the game.
“I feel better each and every day as I’m playing in practice and everything like that,” he said. “It’s just coming back.”
BOXSCORE: Kentucky 78, Wright State 63
At this stage of the recovery process, Poythress said overcoming the injury is more physical than mental, hampering his ability to feel loose on the court at times.
“When you jump, you can’t be lazy when you jump,” Poythress said. “You gotta actually bend your legs when you jump and explode and stuff like that. That’s really the point I’m at now.”
In Kentucky’s 74-63 win over Duke earlier this week, Poythress scored nine points and became more active on the offensive end and slam dunks are becoming more routine for the senior forward. Poythress, who got his tooth caught in the net during a rim-rattling slam against the Blue Devils, threw down a dunk in the first half against Wright State.
“It felt real good,” Poythress said. “I thought about doing something crazy, but I was like, ‘Nah, let me just put it in the basket.’”
Poythress likes the current makeup of the team and enjoys having Tyler Ulis at point guard. Ulis scored a career-high 21 points against the Raiders and has scored 39 points in the past two games.
“He’s just awesome,” Poythress said. “He always finds little gaps and holes you don’t think he’s going to find. He’s always poised, doesn’t get rattled out there, plays great defense and protects the ball. He’s one of the leaders on our team.”
Although his own outing against Wright State was personally gratifying, Poythress understands why Kentucky coach John Calipari wasn’t satisfied with his team’s overall performance.
“We as a team felt we should have played better,” he said. “We kind of came out a little slow. We had the lead and then we kind of let it eat away. We gotta learn how to bury teams like we’ve done in the past couple years. We gotta learn how to step on their throats and just keep on fighting until the end of the game. We’ve just got to do a better job of finishing out games, finishing out quarters, halves (and) stuff like that.”
Even though Poythress is well on the road to recovery, Calipari doesn’t want him to become complacent as the Wildcats venture deeper into the season.
“He’s just got to build on it,” the Kentucky coach said.
Poythress agreed.
“I’m just trying to help the team win and keep on building on it,” Poythress said. “It’s a marathon and not a sprint. A lot of stuff happens, so you just have to keep on building (on each game).”
Notes
* Isaac Humphries and Dominique Hawkins sat out and didn’t play. Humphries has a bruised foot and Hawkins is battling a stomach virus.
* Isaiah Briscoe has scored double figures in all three games he’s played this season and scored 15 points against the Raiders.
* Jamal Murray hit all 10 of his shots from the free-throw line and finished with 13 points. Skal Labissiere also scored 13 points as four of Kentucky’s five starters reached double figures.
Game tracker: Boston at Kentucky, 9 p.m., Tuesday. TV/Radio: SEC Network, 98.1 FM WBUL.
Keith Taylor is a columnist and senior sports writer who covers University of Kentucky athletics for KyForward.com