NCAA Basketball: Coronavirus impact and how it cancelled the NCAA Tournament

There is no longer uncertainty that the NCAA tournament will go on as scheduled for next week.  There previously less than 24 hours ago was a growing majority that believed that at minimum, the tournament would be postponed at least a month or two. Now we know, that the NCAA tournament has been canceled.

Less than 24 hours ago, there was still hope of having the NCAA tournament next week. Now, the possibility of the tournament being postponed or even entirely canceled has become a reality.

Just before noon today, the Big Ten canceled the remainder of their conference tournament. The conference tournament was already in doubt after Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg become ill during his team’s game against Minnesota in the conference tournament promoting concerns with the tournament moving forward. Hoiberg did not contradict the coronavirus and it was reported that it was influenza A. Right before tipoff of the scheduled game between Michigan and Rutgers, an announcement was made that the Big Ten tournament would be canceled. Then the dominoes began to fall.

The Power 5 conferences announced shortly after the Big Ten conference’s decision to cancel their conferences that they would cancel the remainder of their conference tournaments. With those impactful decisions to end the conference tournaments, the whole NCAA tournament was in doubt of being played.

When the Atlantic Coast Conference suspended all athletic-related activities, then the possibility remained bleak that the NCAA tournament would happen. It was reported that Duke was going to suspend all of their athletic activities and so after it was announced that the entire ACC conference would suspend all athletic activities. But the huge news was still to come.

Around 4:15 eastern standard time, the NCAA made their decision on if the NCAA men’s basketball tournament would be played. The NCAA announced a complete cancellation of all remaining spring and winter championships.

There have already been many responses and reactions on social media from fans, coaches, and the media.

Here are some of the reactions

Regardless of anyone’s fandom or how much they looked forward to watching the NCAA tournament, the student-athletes safety should always be the number one priority. Some will argue that they should have postponed the tournament but there would be numerous obstacles and hurdles that would have had to been overcome in order for it to work.

The first hurdle, what to do from now till the start of the tournament?

Even if they took the regular-season champions for those conferences that didn’t finish or had their conference tournament, there still is the issue of selecting the field for the NCAA tournament. Even if they had a “Selection Sunday” and picked the teams who would participate in the tournament, would the teams do in terms of practice and preparation for the tournament that would not even start until late April or even May?

The second hurdle, with many universities, canceling in-person classes, what would those student-athletes be focusing on, especially if they are graduating?

The student-athletes who the universities that they represent, are telling them that it is not safe to have in-person classes on campus. Should those student-athletes practices for a month or longer to potentially play in only one game? Then what about the seniors who are graduating as early as April in some cases, should they miss their graduation ceremony because they are playing in the 2nd round of the NCAA tournament?

The third hurdle, what to do with the NBA deadlines?

The early entry deadline is April 26th and the Draft lottery is May 19th. Then there is the combine from May 21st to the 24th and early entry withdrawal is June 15th. This does not pertain to a lot of student-athletes but it is a very important decision for those who are weighing their options on should they go pro or not.

Then there is the other argument that players who worked so hard to compete for a national championship are being denied the opportunity to compete for one. It can be argued that ESPN’s Jay Bilas said it best as seen below.

The NCAA really didn’t have a lot of options and had a very difficult choice to make. However, safety should always come first and the NCAA made the decision based on being a responsible organization that didn’t want to jeopardize the health and overall well-being of those who would have been a part of the NCAA tournament. Many people are angry at the NCAA’s decision and they have every reason under their 1st amendment rights to express their opinions.

However, a choice was made and that decision was made based on the number one priority to ensure the safety and well-being of those involved, of those who attend, and of those who directly participate in NCAA sanction events. Fair or not, the most responsible choice was made.