TyTy Washington had 90 fans of all ages come to Las Vegas to see him play.
After TyTy Washington signed with Kentucky but before he got to Lexington, I had numerous people tell me about the tremendous support system he had and how popular he was with family and friends in Arizona.
The Kentucky freshman guard has a contagious personality and even though he was not as highly ranked as he probably should have been, he never let that bother him and he’s been very good for Kentucky this year averaging 13.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 47 percent overall from the field.
That Washington support group certainly showed out in Las Vegas Saturday when Kentucky beat North Carolina 98-69.
Washington’s father, Tee, said he counted 90 family members and friends who made the trip from Arizona to Las Vegas to see him play.
“There could have been more. That’s just how many I counted,” said Tee Washington, a former standout high school point guard in Arizona. “We didn’t really know how many were coming, so we were a bit surprised so many came. I really didn’t know until I started counting.
“Some people had said they were coming but you never know if they will or not. When I started adding up how many were there, it was impressive. There was a group of 28 Friday night that went to eat. There was another group of 26.”
Tee Washington estimated about 60 family members were there and the others were “close friends that have been there with me and his mom for 20 plus years.”
The Washington supporters were scattered around the arena. Eight were in the family section. One of TyTy’s great grandmothers was in the wheelchair section. His other great-grandma and grandpa were near midcourt. His great aunts were in another section.
The supporters ranged in age from 4 to about 90 to watch the UK freshman play.
“It was just natural for these people to support him because they always have since he was just a baby,” Tee Washington said.
Washington hurt his wrist sometime in the first half, did not start the second half but got back in the game.
“Injuries are part of the game but he got back in there, so we got a chance to see him a lot,” Tee Washington said.
TyTy got to visit his grandparents at the team hotel Friday night and then spent about another 30 minutes with family members and friends after the game Saturday.
“We are a close-knit family so he was not that surprised that so many people came,” Tee Washington said. “It was kind of chaotic after the game with everybody trying to take a picture and get him to sign something but he loved it all.”
