A basketball sits on the court at the CU Events Center. March 18, 2015 (Gray Bender/CU Independent File)
After an encouraging 2-0 start in the Little Apple Classic, the University of Colorado men’s basketball season will temporarily halt operations due to COVID-19 protocols, the CU Athletic Department announced Tuesday. Colorado Athletic Director Rick George said the Buffs have more than one positive case of COVID-19 within the program and will postpone Wednesday’s matchup at Arizona.
Senior guard D’Shawn Schwartz tested positive for COVID-19 and did not play in CU’s first two games last week in Kansas. Freshman guard Keeshawn Barthelemy and freshman forward Tristan da Silva played in Wednesday’s matchup against South Dakota but were sidelined for Friday’s Kansas State game due to contact tracing. In accordance with Pac-12 policy, the trio was forced to quarantine for 14 days. Head coach Tad Boyle said on Monday that Schwartz was “doing great” and was getting tested for COVID-19 on a daily basis.
The identities of other impacted players were not made public but Colorado did not meet the Pac-12’s minimum number of scholarship players for its Dec. 2 game. In a Pac-12 statement, the conference said it will attempt to reschedule the contest.
George and the CU Athletic Department have not made a decision on Colorado’s Dec. 5 game against Washington State or the Colorado State game on Dec. 8. “The status of other upcoming games is dependent upon contact tracing and subsequent testing of team members and basketball staff this week,” George said in a press release.
“As we have since the pandemic began, we will continue to prioritize the health and safety of our student-athletes, staff, campus and community as we navigate this season,” George said. “We will continue daily testing of our student-athletes to ensure positive cases are identified early and isolated quickly, in addition to adhering to guidance from state, local and campus public health officials.”
Boyle’s Buffs are just the latest team to be impacted by COVID-19 as cases surge across the country.
Contact CU Independent Head Sports Editor Jack Carlough at jack.carlough@colorado.edu and follow him on Twitter @Jack_Carlough.
