TyTy Washington re-injured his ankle in the second half and John Calipari admitted he should not have played him. (Vicky Graff Photo)
The first time Kentucky played Tennessee this season freshman guard TyTy Washington had 28 points on 10-for-13 shooting from the field and 6-for-6 at the foul line along with five assists, three steals and two rebounds in 36 minutes. Kentucky won 107-79. Tuesday night in Knoxville when UK lost 76-63 to the Vols it was a different story.
Washington had four points on 1-for-2 shooting from the field and 1-for-2 at the foul line and three assists in only 12 minutes before leaving the game early in the second half after re-injuring his ankle.
Given a do-over, Kentucky coach John Calipari said he would not have played Washington, who hurt his ankle in Saturday’s win over Florida.
“I should not have played him,” Calipari said. “I was not going to play him in the second half.”
Washington told Calipari he was good to go before the game but it soon became clear he did not have his normal explosion. Again at halftime with UK down 46-32 he told the coach he could play. Then early in the second half he hurt his ankle again.
“I should have gone with my gut (and not played him),” Calipari said.
Washington slapped his sideline chair with his hand after he was injured and several times buried his face in his hands later in the game.
Calipari said he didn’t know if Washington was just frustrated or knew he had seriously injured the ankle.
“We have a few days before we have to play again (against Alabama Saturday). We’ll see if he is going to be able to go,” the UK coach said.
Teammate Jacob Toppin was not surprised Washington tried to play.
“He is a strong player. That shows how much he wants to win just to go out there and sacrifice his body to play for this team,” Toppin said. “At the end of the day, he was frustrated.
“I went up to him and our teammates went up to him and told him to keep his head high. You can’t do nothing about injuries. They happen. Just get healthy. We need him for the long run, so you got to make sure he’s healthy before he comes back.”
