TyTy Washington and Sahvir Wheeler don’t start (but do play) in UK-Arkansas game
READ MORE
Game day: No. 18 Arkansas 75, No. 6 Kentucky 73
Click below for more of the Herald-Leader’s and Kentucky.com’s coverage of Saturday’s men’s basketball game between Kentucky and Arkansas in Fayetteville, Ark.
Expand All
The Kentucky Wildcats did not have guards TyTy Washington and Sahvir Wheeler in the starting lineup for their basketball game at No. 18 Arkansas on Saturday afternoon, but both players came off the bench early in the first half.
UK Coach John Calipari said on the Wildcats’ pregame radio show that Washington and Wheeler had practiced with the team, but he didn’t plan to put then in his starting five against the Razorbacks.
“Let’s see how the game goes,” he said. “We’ve gotta start working them in anyway. But they seem to be somewhat healthy. I told them, ‘If I see any limping or anything …’ you know, I’ll hold them out. But it looks as though they’ll play today.”
The two guards entered the game with 16:52 left in the first half and the Wildcats trailing 7-2.
Kentucky ended up losing, 75-73, but the game was up for grabs in the final minute. Wheeler had 14 points, five assists and three turnovers in 29 minutes. Washington had 10 points, three assists and two steals in 35 minutes. He made a three-pointer at the buzzer to set the final score but went 3-for-12 from the field overall.
Washington and Wheeler both left UK’s game at Tennessee on Feb. 15 with injuries, and neither had played until checking into the Arkansas game. Both players were held out of home games against Alabama and Louisiana State over the past week, with Kentucky winning both of those matchups while playing a makeshift starting backcourt of Davion Mintz and Kellan Grady.
Calipari largely stuck with his starting lineup — also consisting of Jacob Toppin, Keion Brooks and Oscar Tshiebwe — in the second half of the Alabama game, while freshman wing Bryce Hopkins came off the bench to spark UK’s victory over LSU on Wednesday night.
Mintz, Grady, Brooks, Toppin and Tshiebwe were listed as the starters against Arkansas.
Wheeler suffered a wrist injury toward the end of the Tennessee loss, while Washington re-aggravated a lower left leg injury in that game. He first injured the leg a few days earlier in a victory over Florida, missing the end of that game as a result. Washington also suffered a left ankle injury in a loss to Auburn earlier this year and missed nearly all of that game and Kentucky’s victory over Mississippi State three days later.
Washington is projected as an NBA lottery pick this year and is Kentucky’s top backcourt scorer this season, averaging 12.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. Wheeler is leading the Southeastern Conference in assists — with 7.1 per game — for the second consecutive season, and he’s also averaging 9.6 points in his first year with the Wildcats after transferring from Georgia in the offseason.
Kentucky’s next game will be the home finale against Mississippi on Tuesday night, and the Cats will then wrap up the regular season at Florida next Saturday.
Calipari has said repeatedly over the past couple of weeks that getting his roster healthy for the postseason is the biggest priority. Kentucky came into the weekend as a No. 2 seed for the NCAA Tournament, according to the latest ESPN bracketology. The bracket aggregation website BracketMatrix.com ranks UK as the top No. 2 seed — fifth overall — going into Saturday’s game at Arkansas.
This story was originally published February 26, 2022 at 1:51 PM.
