Washington’s Emergence Continues in Gritty Win
PJ Washington likely didn’t think much of it when he was in the moment, but it might have just been the turning point of his season.
Kentucky was playing its first true road game of the season at LSU, and it wasn’t going all that well. The Wildcats were routinely settling for jumpers in the first half and Washington didn’t like it.
So he spoke up, telling his teammates to follow his lead and attack the basket.
“I hate losing,” Washington said. “That’s just what motivated me. I hate losing. I hate seeing other teams beating us, so that’s what it was.”
Washington’s distaste for defeat was on display again Tuesday, as he willed his team to victory on a night when the Wildcats had every reason not to win.
Washington, the player who started his college career by failing to reaching double figures in five of his first eight games, has become indispensable. With his toughness and physicality, Washington helped No. 21/20 UK (13-3, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) clip the Aggies (11-5, 0-4 SEC) by the slimmest of margins, 74-73.
“It just shows that we have fight in us and in the second half we were ready to win the game,” Washington said. “We just played hard and we kept pushing and we obviously came out with a victory. That’s a stepping stone for us and we need to keep stepping in that direction.”
John Calipari sees no player as more important to sustaining that momentum than Washington. It’s fortunate, then, that Washington is playing better than he ever has. After he scored 16 points as the Cats survived some sketchy final-minute execution, Washington is now averaging 15.7 points over his last three games in spite of missing most of the second half of UK’s loss at Tennessee due to leg cramps.
“When you watch PJ today, can you see how bad we were missing him at Tennessee in the second half?” Calipari said. “Had no chance of winning the game without him on the floor, at least 15 minutes. No chance.”
The reason Washington is so essential, in Calipari’s estimation is he is the one player who shows no sign of the toughness issue that plagues his teammates.
“What we’ve been seeing the past couple games, he’s an attack dog, he gets in the lane at will and he’s also a matchup problem for bigger guys that can’t move their feet,” said Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who had 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 39 minutes with Quade Green out due to injury. “He’s really special.”
The one quibble with Washington’s performance came in crunch time, as UK tried to protect a lead from an A&M squad desperate to end a three-game losing streak. He missed his final three free throws and hit just 2 of 6 attempts in the final two minutes, which allowed the Aggies opportunities for one go-ahead 3 and another game-tying 3 in the final 30 seconds, both of which fortunately went begging.
“I just missed them,” Washington said. “I’m going to get in the gym tomorrow and just work on it and I’ll be better.”
That’s wise of Washington to get to work, because it won’t be long before he’s in a similar situation, not if Coach Cal gets his way.
“Now I will put the ball in his hands late to make him get fouled so that you’re going to have to make them,” Calipari said. “If it costs us a game somewhere along the line, it helps him get to understand, I’m not missing these late.”
Perhaps even more meaningfully, Coach Cal is asking Washington to step up as the leader of his Kentucky team. What Calipari saw from Washington in that huddle in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, he wants to see regularly.
“I just asked him, he has to take the leadership of this team,” Calipari said. “He has to do it now. He’s the toughest guy. If a guy is not doing what he has to, you have the ability and the right to tell him.”
That’s heady stuff for a true freshman, but Washington isn’t shying away from the challenge.
“It just means I need to be more vocal on both ends of the floor and just basically be a leader all day, every day,” Washington said. “That’s what I’m going to do.”
