Kentucky's PJ Washington Out For First-Round Game vs. Abilene Christian With Sprained Foot

PJ Washington sprained his foot in Kentucky's loss to Tennessee last Saturday, and it'll cost him at least one NCAA tournament game.

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Kentucky forward PJ Washington did not play in Thursday's first round game against Abilene Christian.

Coach John Calipari said in a tweet that Washington doesn't have a fracture in his foot, but a sprain that will keep him out of action and his foot has been placed in a hard cast.

The specialists confirmed our original diagnosis that @PJWashington has a sprained foot and there is no fracture. Once we determined that PJ was not going to play today, they put him in a hard cast for precautionary reasons. He is out for today’s game.

— John Calipari (@CoachCalArk) March 21, 2019

Washington, a sophomore, is Kentucky's leading scorer, averaging 14.8 points a game. He is also the team's leading rebounder. Washington was originally hurt in Kentucky's SEC tournament semifinal loss to Tennessee.

The No. 2 seed in Midwest region, the Wildcats opened play at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. where tipoff they defeated Abilene Christian 79-44.

After the game, Calipari said Washington's cast may come off Friday or early next week, but he is still unsure when he will return, according to Jeff Goodman of Stadium.