HUGE sigh of relief for the Orange faithful... for now
Nell Redmond-USA TODAY Sports
At least according to the Syracuse Orange men’s basketball program on Friday, it appears we’re in the clear to participate in the NCAA Tournament.
Syracuse announced that the team has cleared COVID protocols following Virginia’s positive test within the program. It was reported that positive came from a player that participated in the game vs. the Orange, though we don’t know which one specifically. We’re no experts, but would seem the guys that played the fewest minutes would be the most likely there, if they didn’t create any contact tracing issues with Syracuse.
Said John Wildhack:
“After consultation with and approval from the Onondaga County Health Department, we can confirm that all Tier 1 individuals (all members of the men’s basketball program who traveled to Greensboro) have tested negative following yesterday’s game against Virginia. Additionally, no member of the program will be required to enter quarantine.”
That quarantine note at the end of the quote is where it seems like no one had a contact tracing issue come up, since that would absolutely have to be part of any protocols. The first part of that statement doesn’t really mean anything, however. Testing negative within 24 hours of possible exposure doesn’t really mean much given varying incubation times for the virus.
So for now, Syracuse appears to be eligible to participate in the NCAA Tournament. That’s good, since projections lately have trended in their favor and the Orange are now a 12-seed according to Bracket Matrix — in accordance with Jim Boeheim’s quest to hold every possible seed in the event before he retires.
We’ll update if anything changes. In the meantime, you can find your bubble guide (as of Friday) here.
