By ADAM ZAGORIA
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The most important player on the Kentucky basketball team sat on the bench Saturday afternoon wearing a blue sweatsuit and a cast on his left leg.
Due to a sprained foot, P.J. Washington was helpless to contribute as No. 2 Kentucky pulled out a 62-56 win over No. 7 Wofford at Jacksonville Memorial Arena to advance to the Sweet 16 in the Midwest Region. The Wildcats will play No. 3 Houston after the Cougars took out No. 11 Ohio State, 74-59, on Sunday night.
“It’s very tough for him,” freshman forward E.J. Montgomery told me in the Kentucky locker room. “Every time we play, he’s like, ‘Dang, I just want to get out there with the guys.’ And he’s just ready to get back out there.”
If Washington had played against Wofford, Kentucky might have won the game more handily. Fletcher Magee struggled mightly for Wofford, shooting 4-for-17 and 0-for-12 from deep in his final college game, an NCAA Tournament record for futility.
Fletcher Magee’s 0-12 from 3-point range is the most 3-point attempts without a make in NCAA Tournament history pic.twitter.com/Re4TI3SImD
— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) March 23, 2019
But this much is certain: Kentucky won’t be favored to make another Final Four run if Washington’s not cleared to play this week. Washington averages a team-best 14.8 points and 7.5 rebounds.
Next up for Kentucky is a game against the Ohio State/Houston winner in the Sweet 16 in Kansas City. After that looms a potential Elite 8 showdown with No. 1 North Carolina.
“We could be very good,” Montgomery said. “If we get P.J. back it’s just going to be just another level. We’re all going to come out with the same energy and just try to ‘W’s.”
Kentucky coach John Calipari said Thursday of Washington that “they’ll probably try to take [the cast] off Tuesday or Wednesday of next week to see how his foot feels.”
Kentucky’s next game will be Friday, so he has basically another week to recover.
“It would be a huge get,” Tyler Herro told me. “I’m not too sure what his status is, so hopefully he’ll be back. Obviously, he’s one of the best players in the country so we’d love to have him back.”
Though a sophomore, Washington is one of the few veterans on this young Kentucky team and the young guys could benefit from his voice.
“He’s been here before last year so he’s just been talking to us, walking through everything with us, and he’s just a great teammate to have.”
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