John Calipari loves how his team responded to chippy play vs Florida

Per usual in a Kentucky-Florida basketball game, both teams were overly physical, and a couple instances in particular were worthy of bench-clearing moments. Kentucky head coach John Calipari said postgame that he was proud of how his team responded to the physicality Florida brought while also playing a clean sheet.

Despite the physicality on both sides, Kentucky edged the Gators 78-57 in Lexington, much to Calipari’s liking.

“That’s not who we are. We’re worried about winning a game,” Calipari said.

The first moment — star freshman and a likely lottery selection in the 2022 NBA Draft, TyTy Washington collided with Florida’s Brandon McKissic. Washington’s left leg was trapped under the Florida guard’s body and he quickly hobbled to the locker room and would not return to the court.

“Well, there was an x-ray. … If it looked like something, I would say, ‘wow.’ He still may be out a week or two, who knows. He got hit hard,” Calipari said. Washington finished with 10 points, six assists and five rebounds during his 26 minutes on the floor prior to the injury collision.

Secondly, a scrum near the Kentucky bench involving Kentucky’s Lance Ware and Florida’s McKissic and Myreon Jones. Ware and Jones were tangled up while fighting for a long rebound, Jones hit the deck and Ware stood over him for a moment. That brought McKissic over, who shoved Ware and the two got in each other’s face for a moment, but Ware laughed it off and the game continued.

Let’s just say the crowd at Rupp Arena were not fans of McKissic Saturday afternoon.

“So probably was good that it happened, not that [Ware] got hurt … and then our response to it,” Calipari said.

Ware, who is starting to become a fan favorite with his personality off the court, is getting the respect from his teammates on the court. Another reason why this Kentucky team is having the season they are. The team chemistry is incredibly high.

The 6-foot-9 sophomore finished with four points and seven rebounds, but made plays throughout the afternoon that didn’t show up on the stat sheet.

“He’s our enforcer. When things get physical, he’s always there,” Kentucky point guard Sahvir Wheeler said.

The star of the game for the Wildcats, per usual, was Oscar Tshiebwe. His casual 27 points and 19 rebounds brought him one step closer in his campaign to win National Player of the Year honors and helped lead Kentucky to their big victory.

Kentucky will travel to Knoxville for a showdown with rival Tennessee Tuesday night at 9 p.m. ET live on ESPN.