The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Shutdown about to end
Huskies slated to return to practice Thursday
On Thursday, the UConn men’s basketball team will convene inside the Werth Family Champions Center for the first time in two weeks and resume practices. Maybe.
Or maybe most of the team will re-convene, but a couple of players may still be sidelined. Or maybe the whole thing gets pushed back again.
It’s impossible to know what’s going to happen on a daily basis in college basketball in this COVID-19 world. A nonconference schedule that UConn is likely to release on Thursday or Friday could probably be better defined as a guideline: Wednesday, Nov. 25, vs. Central Connecticut State at Gampel Pavilion — SUBJECT TO CHANGE. That kind of thing.
Everything will be subject to change this year, everything on the fly, as games and practices could get canceled on a moment’s notice if positive tests arise.
UConn found that out on Nov. 5, when at least on player tested positive for COVID-19, necessitating a two-week shutdown of all team activities. That quarantine is slated to end on Thursday.
Over the past two weeks, UConn players
have been allowed to work out inside Werth, but they’ve only been allowed to enter the gym with one roommate. Each player can only use one ball, and must do their shooting on opposite ends of the gym. They have been able to work out in the weight room, as well, under similar conditions.
Over the weekend, the team worked out on the field hockey field adjacent to Werth.
They did running and other cardiovascular drills, under the watch of strength coach Mike Rehfeldt. It wasn’t officially a team activity, but the fact that it was outdoors allowed for fewer restrictions.
Over the past 14 days, UConn players have been tested three times per week: Monday, Wednesday and Friday. If all players test negative on Wednesday, practice can resume on Thursday. If there is even one positive test, does the whole timeline get reset? Likely not. Since players have been quarantining and not practicing together as a group for two weeks, a player who tests positive may only have to quarantine on his own. Multiple players? That could change everything.
It has not been revealed whether more than one player has tested positive since Nov. 5. If others have since that date, they would likely not participate in Thursday’s practice and would be on a separate clock to return.
Either way, the Huskies will have six days to prepare for their season opener against Donyell Marshall and CCSU. Maybe. There are currently no indications that the game won’t be played. But it’s 2020, and in the world of college basketball, everything is subject to change at a moment’s notice.