{"id":101258,"date":"2019-03-22T23:22:23","date_gmt":"2019-03-23T06:22:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=101258"},"modified":"2019-03-22T23:28:12","modified_gmt":"2019-03-23T06:28:12","slug":"incaa-tournament-injured-star-puts-kentucky-in-tough-spot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/incaa-tournament-injured-star-puts-kentucky-in-tough-spot\/","title":{"rendered":"NCAA Tournament: Injured Star Puts Kentucky in Tough Spot Against Upstart Wofford"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kentucky — one of the top teams remaining in the NCAA Tournament — will not have a key player for its second-round game on Saturday.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Kentucky forward P.J. Washington goes up for a shot against Florida in a regular-season game earlier this year. The sophomore, however, will miss Saturday’s NCAA Tournament game against Wofford due to a foot sprain. (Image: University of Kentucky Athletics)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Wildcats face Wofford for a trip to the Sweet 16, and it will again be without sophomore P.J. Washington. The forward sprained his right foot in a loss to Tennessee last Saturday in the Southeastern Conference Tournament. The 6-foot-9 player of the year candidate leads UK in scoring with 14.8 points per game. His 7.5 rebounding average also leads the team.<\/p>\n

Washington, whose foot is in a cast, missed the Wildcats game Thursday night against Abilene Christian, which they won 79-44. But coach John Calipari noted in his Friday\u2019s press conference that Saturday afternoon will be different.<\/p>\n

The coach said that doctors will remove the cast to check Washington\u2019s foot. However, Calipari pretty much dismissed any chance of his star getting on the court.<\/p>\n

I told them before (the tournament began), \u2018We would be playing Wofford,\u2019\u201d Calipari told reporters Friday. \u201cAnd I know how hard this game will be, especially with P.J. out, how hard a game it will be for us.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Wildcats opened as a six-point favorite against the Terriers, and most sportsbooks had the spread down to five by Friday evening. The money line at most Las Vegas sportsbooks showed Wofford as a 2-1 underdog.<\/p>\n

Tipoff for the game is scheduled for 2:40 pm ET. CBS will broadcast the game, and the NCAA will stream it on its March Madness website.<\/p>\n

Terriers a Dark-Horse Darling<\/h2>\n

Kentucky entered the tournament a 12-1 shot to win the 68-team tournament<\/a> after it earned the second seed in the Kansas City Region.<\/p>\n

\n

Wofford, meanwhile, is a college in South Carolina with an enrollment — 1,672 students — smaller than some high schools. However, the Terriers are enjoying a historic basketball season, earning the school\u2019s first Associated Press poll ranking last month.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

On Thursday night, Wofford beat Seton Hall 84-68. In winning, they knocked out a Pirates team that beat Kentucky on a neutral court in December. The Terriers hit 13-of-28 3-point baskets in the win, and a similar shooting performance Saturday could lead them to the biggest victory in the program\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Terriers are one of the best bets for a mid-major to follow in the path of Loyola-Chicago and VCU and make the Final Four,\u201d wrote Sports Illustrated\u2019s Tristan Jung on Thursday.<\/p>\n

On Friday, Calipari agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis team is legitimate in every form and fashion, including defense, including toughness, including veteran play,\u201d the Kentucky coach said. \u201cYesterday, we started four freshmen.\u201d<\/p>\n

NCAA News and Notes<\/h2>\n

Last year, Virginia made history when it became the first one seed to lose a first-round game. As a top seed again this year, FanDuel Sportsbook said it received limited action on Virginia\u2019s opponent, Gardner Webb. The biggest bet on the underdog was $50.<\/p>\n

\n

While Gardner Webb held a second-half lead against the Cavaliers, which led to a spike in in-game betting on Runnin\u2019 Bulldogs, history did not repeat itself. Virginia ultimately pulled away Friday afternoon for a 71-56, although that did not cover the 21.5-point spread on the game.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

No major upsets to the major title contenders took place on Thursday or Friday afternoon. The highest seed that lost was Kansas State, a four-seed and a 70-1 shot to win it all according to Sportsbook.ag. Marquette<\/a>, a five-seed, also held 70-1 odds and lost in the first round Thursday to Murray State.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kentucky — one of the top teams remaining in the NCAA Tournament — will not have a key player for its second-round game on Saturday. The Wildcats face Wofford for a trip to the Sweet 16, and it will again be without sophomore P.J. Washington. The forward sprained his right foot in a loss to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45,"featured_media":101259,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,1074],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nNCAA Tournament: Injured Star Puts Kentucky in Tough Spot<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Kentucky coach John Calipari said sophomore forward P.J. 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