New year, new team?

It's starting to look that way for the Kentucky Wildcats, who remained unbeaten in SEC play after an impressive 76-58 shellacking of Florida on Saturday in Gainesville.

The decisive victory marked the return of sophomore forward Keion Brooks Jr., who scored 12 points, grabbed six rebounds, and dished out four assists in his first game of the season after recovering from a nagging calf injury.

Combined with the emergence of redshirt freshman wing Dontaie Allen as a dangerous shooting threat during the last three games, it appears Kentucky (4-6, 3-0) has put its dreadful start to the season in the rearview mirror.

UK head coach John Calipari had a different way of looking at it.

"I know there were probably some people who threw dirt on the coffin," he said. "But we pushed the coffin open and said, 'Hey, you ain't puttin' that dirt on this.'

"I kept saying to you, we've got good kids. I'm proud of these kids. They just need time."

Kentucky's graduate transfer point guard, Davion Mintz, concurred.

"Like I was preaching earlier at the beginning of the year, stay patient with us, give us time and let us figure this out," Mintz said. "I kept using those words because I figured it would all come together. That's all it took. We got our war wounds and we went out battling in a couple of the losses that we had, but this is a new team. This is a new year, new team. We're going to keep battling and keep having fun out there."

The Kentucky team that showed up in Gainesville did not look anything like the one that suffered through an almost historic six-game losing streak earlier this season. The Cats shot 56% from the field. They knocked down 6-of-13 shots from the arc. They shot 92% at the free-throw line. They dished out 18 assists and committed only 14 turnovers.

On the defensive end of the floor, Kentucky held Florida to 38% shooting from the field, recorded 10 steals, and blocked seven shots.

Four players scored in double-figures for the Cats, led by Mintz and BJ Boston with 13 apiece. Brooks followed with 12, and Olivier Sarr added 10. Two other UK players -- Devin Askew and Isaiah Jackson -- each chipped in with nine.

But it was Brooks' performance that commanded the most attention.

"You saw the kind of athlete he is," Calipari said. "You see that he’s way physically stronger than he was. Way more patient mentally. The game has slowed down for him."

"I've always believed in my ability to come back and play well," Brooks said. "I was constantly working out, staying in great shape. I have to give a huge shout out to our strength coach Rob Harris. I don’t even like to call him a strength coach, he’s way more than that. Not only did he do a great job of keeping me in shape, but I spent a lot of time with him, so he was always in my ear, making sure I was staying positive. The conversations we had, he really helped me get through what I was going through.”

Despite the healthy return of Brooks, Kentucky still has not played a game with its full roster this season. Five-star freshman wing Terrence Clarke missed his third straight game with an ankle injury, and fellow newcomer Cam'Ron Fletcher has not played since briefly leaving the team during the holidays.

*****

RAPID RECAP:

Kentucky opened up a close game at halftime (35-29) with a 16-4 run early in the second period to take an 18-point lead. The Gators fought back with a modest 8-2 spurt, but the Cats followed that with a 13-0 run to put the game away. After Florida hit six 3-pointers in the first half, Mike White's squad managed only one during the decisive stretch of the game which saw Kentucky lead by as many as 25 points.

GAME BALL:

Keion Brooks Jr., Kentucky -- Playing for the first time in 10 months -- ironically, on the same floor he last played for the Cats -- Brooks delivered 12 points, six rebounds, and four assists in 24 minutes of seemingly rust-free action.

KEY STAT:

Kentucky dished out 18 assists on 29 field goals in the game, 62% of its made shots from the floor. Four players -- Devin Askew, Davion Mintz, BJ Boston, and Keion Brooks Jr. -- had three or more assists.

QUOTABLE:

"You watched the game. You saw it. He gave us a whole different element to the game. Keion was amazing today. It was super-fun. I'm speechless, really." -- UK guard Davion Mintz on the impact Keion Brooks Jr. had on the Cats in his first game this season.

UP NEXT:

Kentucky returns to action on Tuesday night at Rupp Arena against Alabama. The Crimson Tide (9-4, 3-0 SEC) won 94-90 on Saturday at Auburn. Tipoff for UK and Bama is slated for 9 ET on ESPN.