Ivy League cancels conference tournament due to coronavirus
By Rob DausterMar 10, 2020, 11:28 AM EDT
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Wednesday cant come fast enough!
The Ivy League is cancelling their conference tournament due to the spread of coronavirus, the conference announced on Tuesday morning.
“We understand and share the disappointment with student-athletes, coaches and fans who will not be able to participate in these tournaments,” Ivy League Executive Director Robin Harris said. “Regrettably, the information and recommendations presented to us from public health authorities and medical professionals have convinced us that this is the most prudent decision.”
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Yale, the league’s regular season champion, will be heading to the NCAA tournament. Princeton will receive the automatic bid to the women’s NCAA tournament.
This is the first Division I basketball tournament that has been cancelled, but it is not the first sporting event that will not be taking place. Tennis tournaments have been called off, European soccer leagues are shutting down and even in the college basketball ranks, Chicago State opted not to play games at Seattle or Utah Valley last week due to concerns over the virus.
The major question now centers on what happens next. The major conference tournaments start on Tuesday. Fans have purchased tickets, made travel arrangements and, if they need to, have paid for lodging. Those events run through the entire week. The NCAA tournament will start the week after that, and the money that comes in from the NCAA’s TV deal with CBS and Turner funds more than 85 percent of their operating budget for the year.
A decision is going to be made soon on what will happen. Will the events get cancelled? Will they be played without fans in attendance? Will they be moved to a centralized location?
I don’t know.
What I do know is that the Ivy League is not the last coronavirus announcement we are going to get this week.