Kentucky star freshman TyTy Washington left the game in the second half of No. 5 UK's 78-57 win over Florida on Saturday with a leg injury. Florida wing Brandon McKissic collided with Washington while diving on the floor for a loose ball, cutting Washington's legs from underneath him. The 6-foot-3 guard hobbled to the locker room at Rupp Arena following the play and did not return.
The moment cast a pall over an otherwise solid afternoon for the Wildcats, who won their sixth straight and improved to 21-4 (10-2 SEC) to stay within a game of Auburn in the SEC title race. Washington finished with 10 points on 4 of 13 shooting and added six assists and five rebounds. Even without Washington on the floor, UK closed the game on a 13-2 run as Davion Mintz stepped up and hit three 3-pointers after his teammate's exit.
After the game, Kentucky coach John Calipari said an X-ray on Washington's left lower leg did not indicate a serious injury, but Washington will likely miss some time.
"Well, there was an X-ray, so -- you know, yeah, so if that were -- it looked like there's something there, I'd be like, 'wow,'" Calipari said. "Now, he still may be out a week or two, who knows? Could be a muscle, it could be something that separated, because he got hit hard."
Washington missed UK's win over Mississippi State on Jan. 25 with an ankle injury he suffered in a loss at Auburn on Jan. 22. Mintz stepped into the starting lineup when Washington was out, and graduate transfer Kellan Grady played all but two minutes of that game.
If Washington ends up missing one or more games again, a larger role for Mintz could be one option for UK. Starting point guard Sahvir Wheeler, who is already averaging 30.4 minutes per game, would also likely be leaned on to facilitate the offense on nearly every possession. Washington averages four assists per game and is an excellent secondary ball-handler who has worked well in tandem with Wheeler.
Kentucky faces a relatively challenging schedule over the next two weeks as it plays at No. 19 Tennessee on Tuesday before hosting Alabama next Saturday. The following week, UK hosts LSU and travels to play an Arkansas team that just knocked off No. 1 Auburn earlier this week.