John Calipari wanted to do more for Keyontae Johnson to open the Kentucky, Florida game
Kentucky coach John Calipari was all for honoring Florida Gators senior Keyontae Johnson. So when Johnson, who hadn’t played or practiced since suffering a medical emergency last season, started and received the opening tip on Senior Day against the Wildcats, Calipari couldn’t help but get emotional.
In his postgame press conference following a 71-63 victory on Saturday, the coach revealed he wanted to do even more to honor Johnson.
“You know what I said to do: Let him grab the ball, shoot the layup and keep the score in the books,” Calipari said. “They went, ‘What?’ I said, ‘It’s a 40-minute game.’ Two points, it may come down to that and if it does, good for that.”
Ultimately, Johnson did not attempt a basket, exiting the game after taking a few dribbles at midcourt. As Florida fans and players clapped for Johnson during his Senior Day moment, Calipari also joined the applause. As the referee blew the whistle to allow the player to come off the floor, he rushed to hug the Kentucky coach before doing the same with a line of Florida coaches and teammates excited to see his big moment.
John Calipari said after the game that he would have liked to see Keyontae Johnson score, citing how he opened a Jan. 15 matchup against Tennessee in a 1-3-1 zone to honor former Wildcats coach Joe B. Hall, who had recently passed.
“What did we do in the Tennessee game at home? We went 1-3-1 to start the game,” Calipari said. “What did they do? They scored. It’s one basket. I said, ‘Why not let him go score.’ When I grabbed him, I just said, ‘I wish you were playing,’ and I got a little emotional because, come on. This kid, his whole life he worked to be in this moment and these type of games and it was taken from him. Good for Florida for figuring out a way to really honor him and their fans for what they’ve done.”
Johnson collapsed on the court against Florida State on Dec. 12, 2020 in one of the scariest sports moments in recent memory. After being taken to the hospital, reports surfaced that the star was diagnosed with acute myocarditis. The inflammation of the heart ended his college basketball career.
Over his college career, Johnson played in 71 games and started 55. He averaged 11.1 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game and shot 37.6 percent from the 3-point line over his three seasons. He was considered a candidate to win SEC Player of the Year in 2020-21 before the medical emergency forced him to stop playing.
With the loss, Florida ends the regular season with a 19-12 record. The Gators now turn their attention to the SEC Tournament, which is set to begin Wednesday in Tampa, Florida.
On3’s James Fletcher contributed to this report.