WATCH: John Calipari, Kentucky honor Terrence Clarke at BBM

Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari took a moment before Friday’s annual Big Blue Madness game to honor Terrence Clarke. He spent this past season with the Wildcats before declaring for the 2021 NBA draft this offseason.

He sadly died in a car crash in April, months before he was set to be selected. He was 19. Calipari stepped up to the podium Friday to address the crowd on Clarke’s passing.

“In April, we lost a son, a brother, a young man with his whole life ahead of him. Terrence Clarke came into the gym every day with a smile on his face and spirit about him that rubbed off on everyone he touched,” he said.

“[He] came into the gym with a smile on his face and a spirit about him that rubbed off on anyone he touched.”

Coach Cal honors Terrence Clarke and his family at @KentuckyMBB's Big Blue Madness 👏

(via @SECNetwork)pic.twitter.com/ZqQKQvTZdW

— ESPN (@espn) October 16, 2021

Calipari then paused to shout out each of Clarke’s family members in attendance, from his mother to his grandmother. A spotlight shined as fans gave a standing ovation and the coach went over to hug the Clarke family.

“I’m so sorry that Terrence didn’t have an opportunity to experience this in person,” Calipari continued. “But I know he’s here in spirit tonight. The Big Blue Nation loved your son. Why don’t we show them how much we love him?”

The crowd then erupted into another booming cheer.

This past season, Clarke played in the first seven games for the Wildcats but was sidelined with an ankle injury that kept him out until the season finale against Mississippi State. He finished the year averaging 9.6 points. A five-star recruit in the class of 2020, he held offers from fellow blue bloods Kansas and UCLA but the Boston native opted to head to Lexington.

The tribute from John Calipari and Kentucky to Terrence Clark on Friday was a touching gesture to the grieving family. For his sake, hopefully the Wildcats can rebound from last year with a strong start to 2021-22.

Kentucky is set to open its season on Nov. 9 in a huge matchup against Duke.