VCU believes COVID-19 positives will have stemmed from problematic hotel have forward of Atlantic 10 title sport

No. 10 seed VCU’s unexpected departure from the 2021 NCAA Match stemmed from three gamers testing certain for COVID-19 in a 48-hour duration, sources prompt CBS Sports actions. It is a ways the first time since closing summer that VCU had any gamers check certain for COVID-19, a source mentioned, and it resulted in a no-contest being known as in its scheduled sport towards No. 7 seed Oregon forward of Saturday night’s tipoff.

Internally, VCU is wondering whether the positioning of the Atlantic 10 Match title sport is accountable for the program finding itself out of the NCAA Match. Sources prompt CBS Sports actions that VCU, St. Bonaventure and the total officiating crew for the tournament all stayed on the Dayton Marriott — straight across the aspect road from UD Arena, problem of the title sport in Dayton, Ohio. 

“I’m stupefied St. Bonaventure doesn’t have any certain cases,” one source mentioned. 

No. 9 seed St. Bonaventure played Saturday, falling 76-61 to No. 8 seed LSU within the first round. 

College basketball first price Roger Ayers labored the Atlantic 10 Match title sport between St. Bonaventure and VCU. He therefore examined certain for COVID-19 after arriving in Indianapolis for the NCAA Match. Ayers is for the time being battling the coronavirus and prompt CBS Sports actions he has struggled all week.  

“The hotel changed into packed,” a source prompt CBS Sports actions. “That they had some compose of totally different tournament there. Other folks no longer adhering to protocols, walking via the hotel and foyer with out masks. There were people there that weren’t from the A-10. The NCAA can regulate who’s there, who’s within the constructions, within the inns, within the convention heart. You are going to have to have a credentials which have your describe on it that you just retain on round your neck in each keep you shuffle. All people has to position on masks, four people to an elevators, no congregating within the lobbies. The NCAA has complete regulate of what’s going down on.”

This changed into no longer exclusively the case on the Dayton Marriott.

“There changed into some [other] tournament there,” the source added. “There were early life, oldsters and people with differences of thought [about COVID-19] and the hotel team — I witnessed the females on the check-in yelling to people walking via the foyer about striking their masks on.”

The tournament changed into the Ohio Excessive College Athletic Affiliation’s dispute basketball tournament. 

When reached for a observation regarding the subject on the A-10 Match title sport, league spokesperson Drew Dickerson shared the following observation with CBS Sports actions: “A-10 groups had been all within the identical hotel. The groups all had devoted flooring ruin free every totally different and ruin free the final public. The officials did as properly. There changed into no mingling with groups; groups had devoted meeting rooms that had been ruin free everyone else and ruin free every totally different.”

VCU athletic director Ed McLaughlin supplied the following observation to CBS Sports actions: “We stayed on our contain ground, and away from totally different people whereas we had been within the hotel. To boot, our workforce meeting residence changed into in a separate cruise of the building, closed to most folk. We perform no longer blame any individual or any venture for what’s came about. We adopted all Atlantic 10 Convention protocols, which we assume had been acceptable.”

VCU’s coaching team met with the gamers Saturday afternoon on their devoted hotel ground forward of their scheduled sport towards Oregon. The three gamers who’ve examined certain weren’t allowed to be in attendance. VCU coach Mike Rhoades prompt CBS Sports actions the workforce is flying dwelling Saturday night, their plane scheduled to head away within the dark. All who’ve examined certain is perchance no longer on the flight; the NCAA has organized a mosey abet via constitution bus with the workforce coach.