COVID-19, Game Cancellations, and the NCAA Tournament

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

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Through last night, the Big East has played 64% of their scheduled conference games, while the Atlantic 10 has played only 21% of their conference games.

Big East Conference 2021-22 Schedule – BigEast.com

Friday, December 17, 2021: 1 conference games scheduled • 1 conference games played • 0 conference games postponed/cancelled
Saturday, December 18, 2021: 2 conference games scheduled • 2 conference games played • 0 conference games postponed/cancelled
Tuesday, December 21, 2021: 2 conference games scheduled • 2 conference games played • 0 conference games postponed/cancelled
Wednesday, December 22, 2021: 1 conference games scheduled • 0 conference games played • 1 conference games postponed/cancelled
Thursday, December 23, 2021: 1 conference games scheduled • 0 conference games played • 1 conference games postponed/cancelled
Tuesday, December 28, 2021: 2 conference games scheduled • 0 conference games played • 2 conference games postponed/cancelled
Wednesday, December 29, 2021: 4 conference games scheduled • 2 conference games played • 2 conference games postponed/cancelled
Saturday, January 1, 2022: 5 conference games scheduled • 3 conference games played • 2 conference games postponed/cancelled
Tuesday, January 4, 2022: 3 conference games scheduled • 1 conference games already postponed/cancelled as of Tuesday morning

Totals through Monday January 3, 2022: 18 conference games scheduled • 10 conference games played • 8 conference games postponed/cancelled

Atlantic 10 Conference 2021-22 Schedule – Atlantic10.com

Thursday, December 30, 2021: 7 conference games scheduled • 2 conference games played • 5 conference games postponed/cancelled
Sunday, January 2, 2022: 7 conference games scheduled • 1 conference games played • 6 conference games postponed/cancelled
Wednesday, January 5, 2022: 7 conference games scheduled • 4 conference games already postponed/cancelled as of Tuesday morning

Totals through Monday January 3, 2022: 14 conference games scheduled • 3 conference games played • 11 conference games postponed/cancelled

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[Fieldhouse Flyer]

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How the latest COVID-19 spike will impact the rest of the 2021-22 college basketball season - Jeff Borzello, ESPN - January 6, 2022

The cancellations, postponements and team pauses that have permeated college basketball in recent weeks have yielded to a new round of questions for the sport. One year after the coronavirus pandemic produced the most unusual season (and postseason) in the modern era, the rise of the COVID-19 omicron variant has caused the game's stakeholders to revisit many of those same 2020-21 questions.

Will teams and leagues be able to play something resembling full schedules? Will conference tournaments be played? What are the implications if those answers are "no," and what will the consequences be for an NCAA tournament that was expected to proceed as normal in 2022? Which leagues have had the most issues, and is there a consensus within the game on how best to move forward? As those questions continue to be raised, we looked at the biggest issues for college basketball, and the most significant questions being asked as the game attempts to resume in the coming days and weeks.

Which leagues and teams are currently in a holding pattern as a result of COVID-19 issues?

What do we know about the rescheduling of games? Are leagues going to be able to play full conference schedules?

In an article for NCAA.com last week, Andy Katz wrote that the selection committees will discuss game minimums later in January. He also pointed out that Division I teams have played an average of 12 games this season.

How have leagues adjusted their forfeiture rules? What are the implications? What about conference tournaments?

How is the NCAA preparing to adjust the 2022 NCAA tournament, if at all?

What are coaches saying about the latest COVID-19 issues in college basketball?

The CDC's decision on December 27th to cut isolation time for positive tests and quarantine time for close contacts from 10 days to five has been viewed as a game-changer. The ACC quickly followed with a shorter isolation option for vaccinated individuals, going from a mandatory 10 days to two negative tests at least 24 hours apart, or improving symptoms and one negative test at least seven days from the first positive test. The Pac-12 and other leagues followed with similar recommendations.

If you're looking for a sign of optimism, here's a potential trend: Last Tuesday, Dec. 28, 16 of 29 scheduled games were postponed or canceled. This past Tuesday, Jan. 4, only nine of 38 were postponed or canceled.

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[stever20]

Interesting thing from Jon Rothstein- Sources: The Atlantic 10 is petitioning the NCAA to allow players that are redshirting this season limited participation without jeopardizing a full year of eligibility to help combat COVID roster shortages.

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

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US Covid-19 hospitalizations reach record high, HHS data shows - Deidre McPhillips, CNN - January 11, 2022, 9:00 AM ET

Covid-19 hospitalizations in the United States have reached a new record high, surpassing the previous peak from January 2021, according to data from the US Department of Health and Human Services.

There are 145,982 people currently hospitalized with Covid-19 – about twice as many than two weeks ago. There are nearly 24,000 intensive care unit beds in use for Covid-19 patients.

Hospitalizations reached a previous peak about a year ago, with more than 142,000 people hospitalized with Covid-19 on January 14, 2021. During the Delta surge over the summer, Covid-19 hospitalizations peaked at about 104,000 on September 1, 2021. There have been only 23 days since the beginning of the pandemic that there have been more than 125,000 people hospitalized with Covid-19 at one time, HHS data shows.

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[stever20]

saw this graphic on twitter. Hopefully the trend continues to improve and improve on the # of cancels going forward-
https://twitter.com/kenpomeroy/status/1 ... 8199671808