By Marty Gordon
NRVsports@ourvalley.org
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to play havoc with sports schedules, the latest of which is an announcement from the Big South Conference that its 2021 Hercules Tires Basketball Championships will not be played at a neutral location but rather at the higher seed locations. That change affects Radford University.
The men’s and women’s tournaments had been scheduled to be played at Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte.
The decision to adjust the format was made by the Big South’s Council of Athletics Directors and is due to the current COVID-19 pandemic environment. Conference Commissioner Kyle Kallander said Wednesday he felt that for the health and safety of the student-athletes and participants, minimizing the number of teams and possible exposures in one location is smart.
“It also provides a reward to those teams with higher seeds for regular season success,” he said.
This is the second time the conference has moved the neutral-site plan back another year. Initially, the 2019-2020 tournament would have been the first in Charlotte. Now, it could be no earlier than 2021-2022.
The men’s and women’s No. 1 seeds were originally scheduled to host the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds with higher seeds hosting first round games. The highest remaining seed will still host the championship final.
The dates for the tournaments will be determined later and announced when they are finalized and will follow Big South Conference health and safety protocols and guidelines.
The new 2021 Hercules Tires Men’s Basketball Championship Format:
First Round (at No. 6, 7, 8 seeds) – date TBD
Quarterfinal Round (at No. 1, 2, 3, 4 seeds) – date TBD
Semifinal Round (at higher seed) – date TBD
Championship Final (at highest remaining seed) – Sunday, March 7 (noon – ESPN)
2021 Hercules Tires Women’s Basketball Championship Format:
First Round (at No. 6, 7, 8 seeds) – date TBD
Quarterfinal Round (at No. 1, 2, 3, 4 seeds) – date TBD
Semifinal Round (at higher seed) – date TBD
Championship Final (at highest remaining seed) – Sunday, March 14
Positive test results forcing teams to “pause” their seasons has affected the Big South just like every other conference. Kallander said, however, that proactive scheduling policies put in place prior to the season allowed the Big South Conference to be flexible in ensuring the maximum number of games would be played.
“The Big South has led the country in the average number of games played by institution. That says a lot about the effort and cooperation by the Big South membership,” he said.
COVID protocols have limited the contact of teams with possible positive COVID-19 cases as schedules have been adjusted several times. But Kallander admitted the threat of teams not being able to participate in post-season play due to COVID is still very real.
“We are currently exploring appropriate procedures in the event the Big South is faced with that challenge,” he said.
The Big South is one of only three conferences nationwide that approved special scheduling in the midst of the restrictions. The league schedule was adjusted to limit travel and help ensure the health and safety of student-athletes, coaches and staff. In most cases, teams played doubleheaders on back-to-back days.
The conference also approved a plan that would allow teams to play with seven players in the first game of the doubleheader and only six players on the second day. So far, that has not come into play.
During the season, both Radford University’s men’s and women’s basketball teams have had to shut down day-to-day operations because of the COVID-19 protocol.
Other college programs are also being affected by COVID-19. Emory & Henry College has announced that its wrestling program would shut down effective immediately due to health and safety concerns stemming from COVID-19.
“The student-athletes on the team have made the difficult decision to conclude their current season due to safety concerns,” said Pete Hansen, head coach of the men’s and women’s wrestling teams. “I support their decision as we continue to focus on the safety of our student-athletes during this unprecedented time.”
The Wasps competed in two meets during their inaugural season, before pausing wrestling-related activities in the middle of January due to COVID-19 positive cases and precautionary contact tracing measures among individuals.
Emory & Henry officials have said the school will maintain the current schedule of competition in other sports and will continue to observe thorough health and safety protocols based on guidance from local, state and national medical experts, which includes testing for all student-athletes prior to competitions.
