GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Kentucky coach John Calipari announced Monday that he "tweaked" the offense to get his interior players more involved. The Hall of Fame coach wouldn't divulge the secret, but one obvious change was Skal Labissiere.

The freshman forward made his first start since Dec. 19, a span of 18 games, and responded with 11 points and a career-best eight rebounds to help No. 22 Kentucky to an 88-79 victory over Florida on Tuesday night in a Southeastern Conference game.

Labissiere had averaged just 3.7 points and 2.3 rebounds since losing his starting job.

Senior forward Alex Poythress rebounded after fouling out with no points in a Saturday loss at Vanderbilt. He had a double-double of 12 points and a team-high 10 rebounds against Florida.

Labissiere helped Kentucky (22-8, 12-5) get off to a fast start and the Wildcats' guards took over in the second half.

Freshman Jamal Murray had eight straight points to push Kentucky comfortably on top at 59-47. He scored 18 of his 21 points in the second half, finishing with 20 or more points for the ninth straight game.

Sophomore guard Tyler Ulis posted a double-double of 19 points and 11 assists and freshman Isaiah Briscoe had 13 points, three rebounds and three assists.

Briscoe's 3-pointer gave Kentucky its biggest lead of the night at 72-55 with 4:52 to play.

Kentucky shot 52.7 percent from the field (29 of 55) and was 70 percent from 3-point range (7 of 10). Murray accounted for four of the baskets beyond the arc.

The Wildcats won the rebounding battle 45-35 and ended the game with 13 turnovers, eight of those in the first half.

Kentucky, which did not attempt a free throw in the first half, attempted 32 in the second half as Florida (17-13, 8-9) continually fouled down the stretch in an attempt to close the gap. Kentucky made 23 free throws to maintain the lead.

Despite the loss, Florida got a career-effort from sophomore John Egbunu. The center scored 27 points on 12-of-15 shooting from the field.

Senior forward Dorian Finney-Smith added 15 points as did freshman guard KeVaughn Allen. Sophomore forward Devin Robinson had 11 points for the Gators.

Florida shot 42.6 percent from the field (29 of 68) but 27.8 percent from 3-point range (5 of 18).

Early on, it was all Kentucky as the Wildcats raced to a 32-18 lead with just over seven minutes remaining in the first half.

But then Florida mounted a furious rally with its own 14-2 run to close to within 34-32 before forward Marcus Lee's dunk accounted for the 36-32 halftime margin. During that stretch, Kentucky missed eight of nine shots and committed five turnovers.

NOTES: After 36 seasons, Tuesday's game was the final one at the O'Connell Center before Florida's on-campus facility undergoes a $64.5 million renovation. ... Jamal Murray has three 30-point games this season, one being the 35 he scored when Kentucky beat Florida 80-61 on Feb. 6 in Lexington, Ky. ... Tyler Ulis entered Tuesday's game with 196 assists this season, third most in program history for a single season. The school record is 241 in 37 games set by John Wall in 2010. ... With two games remaining, Kentucky is tied for first place in the SEC as it aims for its 47th regular-season title.