Ivy League cancels tournament over coronavirus concerns
The Ivy League announced Tuesday that it has canceled its conference basketball tournament due to concerns about the new coronavirus. As a result, regular-season champion Yale will get an automatic bid to March Madness.
"With the health of students as well as the campus and the general community in mind, the Ivy League presidents have decided to cancel the upcoming Ivy League men's and women's basketball tournaments. The league's regular-season champions, Princeton women and Yale men, are the automatic qualifiers to the NCAA Tournaments," a conference statement read.
"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."
One Harvard player was not happy with the move, which ends the Crimson's season.
Horrible, horrible, horrible decision and total disregard for the players and teams that have put their hearts into this season. This is wrong on so many levels and the @IvyLeague should do its due diligence to find a better solution. Everyone knows the risks of playing! https://t.co/HQXprzX9q6
— Bryce Aiken (@BryceAiken) March 10, 2020
Both the men's and women's tournaments had been scheduled for this weekend in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Tickets will be refunded in full.
The tournament is the latest addition to a growing list of cancellations and countermeasures due to the global spread of the coronavirus. On Sunday, however, NCAA executive Dan Gavitt said there are no present plans to cancel March Madness games or play them without spectators.