March Madness: Top takeaways from the first day of the 2019 NCAA Tournament
By Brian Rauf
4) PJ Washington‘s injury and how it limits Kentucky
The biggest news of the morning was the Kentucky big man PJ Washington had his sprained foot in a hard cast and would not play in UK’s game against Abilene Christian.
Kentucky didn’t need him – they won 79-44 – but his injury could limit this team’s ceiling.
He’s their leading scorer and rebounder and had really stepped his game up in conference play by becoming the kind of versatile force the Wildcats needed. On top of being a superb defender, his ability to shoot from the perimeter and finish on the block – with a renewed aggressive mindset – made him an All-American. Missing your best player and leader will obviously hurt any team.
There’s also a ton of uncertainty still surrounding his injury. John Calipari said after the game that Washington might get his cast off tomorrow or next week or sometime after that, we just don’t know. But things aren’t looking promising.
In interview outside locker room, John Calipari told ESPN he doesn’t think PJ Washington will play Saturday. #bbn #UKbasketball
— John Clay (@johnclayiv) March 22, 2019
Not having a set timeline for his injury keeps Kentucky from making set adjustments – they’re having to handle everything on the fly, which tends to cause a team to play below their potential.
Plus, Kentucky might now have the toughest second-round matchup of any high seed in Wofford, who has not lost since mid-December and is one of the hottest shooting teams in the country. That will be the game to watch on Saturday.