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The Big East, Atlantic 10 and Big Ten were among the conferences that canceled their postseason men's basketball tournaments Thursday over concerns related to coronavirus.
“The A-10 has made a decision to discontinue play as a result of the Covid-19 virus," Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade said in a news release. "Given the rapid spread of the virus, this decision was supported by the Athletic Directors and Presidents’ Council. These are uncertain times for sure, and we feel tremendous empathy for the student-athletes who will not have the opportunity to finish competing. However, the welfare of the student-athletes and the public is of utmost importance.”
Rutgers was set to begin its Big Ten tournament run Thursday afternoon against Michigan in Indianapolis.
"The Big Ten Conference will use this time to work with the appropriate medical experts and institutional leadership to determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the COVID-19 pandemic," the conference said in a statement. "The main priority of the Big Ten Conference continues to be the health, safety and wellness of our student-athletes, coaches, administrators, fans and media as we continue to monitor all developing and relevant information on the COVID-19 virus."
The Big Ten tournament was already in full throttle when the cancelation was announced.
"I think it’s the right thing to do," said Rutgers athletic director Pat Hobbs, via NJ.com. "You have to be concerned about everyone’s health and well-being first. Obviously this is a healthy population here but there are people who are very sick, people who are dying of this. So I think certainly it’s the right decision but your heart breaks for the kids, particularly the seniors. They’re a little numb.
"The last couple of days there’s been so much information out there and so you’re out there practicing, getting ready to start the game and then the call comes in that the tournament is going to have to be cancelled so," Hobbs added. "It’s a little bit of surreal to be honest.''
The NCAA announced hours later that it canceled it canceled all remaining winter and spring championships, including the NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments. Seton Hall and Rutgers were expected to receive at-large bids to the tournaments if they were unable to win their league tournament titles.
Multiple conferences throughout college basketball also canceled their respective tournaments, including including the Big 12, SEC, ACC, Pac-12 and AAC.