Six refs out after positive test
Parts of the NCAA’s finely honed plan for playing March Madness amid the pandemic came into question Tuesday just as teams began gearing up for practices to tune up for the games later this week.
One referee tested positive for COVID-19, forcing him and five others who went to dinner with him out of the tournament.
Their excursion ran counter to a protocol that called on all players and staff to eat at their NCAA hotels, but because the referees’ rooms weren’t ready and there was no food available, they were given a pass.
It resulted in a big shakeup of the officiating corps for the games, 52 of which take place Thursday through next Monday at arenas in Indianapolis, Bloomington and Purdue. Though the NCAA brought plenty of backup referees, the mass departure was an illustration of how things can go wrong.
Gonzaga’s Corey Kispert and Baylor’s Jared Butler led the way with Associated Press All-America first-team nods from the national panel of 63 media members who vote each week in the AP top 25 poll.
They were joined by unanimous pick Luka Garza of Iowa, a two-time selection, along with Ayo Dosunmu of Illinois and Cade Cunningham of Oklahoma State.
USC freshman Evan Mobley was named to the second team.
A diversity report found that a significant graduation gap continues to exist between white and Black basketball players for the teams competing in this year’s NCAA tournament, particularly on the men’s side.
The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at Central Florida examined the Graduation Success Rate for the teams competing in the upcoming NCAA tournament and found that white male student-athletes graduated at a rate 13.5 percentage points higher than Black male student-athletes.
White players on average had graduation rate of 93.8%, compared with 80.3% for Black players.
The gap was slightly lower on the women’s side with white players recording a graduation rate of 97.9% compared with 91.8% for Black players.
Utah fired men’s basketball coach Larry Krystkowiak after 10 seasons and a 183-139 record . ... Richard Pitino was hired as New Mexico’s head coach, hours after Minnesota finalized his firing following eight seasons with the Gophers . ... George Mason fired men’s basketball coach Dave Paulsen . ... Mississippi women’s coach Yolett McPheeMcCuin will miss at least the first two games of the WNIT after testing positive for COVID-19.