Courting Covid: How the Pandemic has Laid a Detriment on College Basketball

When thinking of the unique aspects of college basketball, what comes to mind? What qualities does it have that are noticeably superior to other sports, both collegiate and professional? The commonly found answer amongst fans would be the crowd atmosphere. The energy that a packed arena of euphoric twenty-year-old’s creates is one not easily replicated anywhere else in sports. It was near impossible to imagine March without the NCAA Basketball Tournaments before last year when they were forced to cancel both tournaments on account of the Covid-19 pandemic starting to take precedence in everyday life. The NBA and NHL put their seasons on halt, the MLB significantly reduced and postponed theirs, and the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo were even postponed indefinitely. While most professional sports were able to resume and eventually complete their seasons in bubble environments, college basketball on the other hand, never got to complete its 2020 campaign.

When Covid-19 initially hit in March 2020, the NCAA for obvious reasons had to come to terms with losing out on the income brought in from their men’s and women’s postseason tournaments, which brought in $868 Million the year prior. This decision cost about $600M lost in TV revenue and ticket sales alone. At the time, when the details of sports post-Covid were unclear, many were under the assumption that next year’s (this year’s) season and tournament would be played in normal environments. Well, here we are almost a year later and college basketball is but a shell of its former self. As the 2021 NCAA tournaments draw near, it is clear that the financial losses from the shortened 2020 season could be an issue for years to come, and the notion of a sold-out Duke game full of mask-less, excited Cameron Crazies seems incredibly farfetched. Professional sports however, have for the most part managed to implement coronavirus protocols to a competent enough extent to move forward with their respective 2021 seasons. Albeit in empty arenas with a few exceptions in certain locations which may allow extremely reduced crowd sizes. While the NCAA is a part of that list, the current product still leaves much to be desired. Numerous teams, including some of the sports larger programs, have had continual shifts in scheduling, causing many teams to urge the NCAA to forego conference tournaments and head directly into March Madness. The plan for the tournament currently is for it to be played inside a bubble in Indiana to mitigate the spread of Covid-19, which also means zero fans, essentially nullifying one of the game’s most distinctive qualities

Meanwhile, other professional leagues have managed to resume play with similar Covid-19 protocols implemented, and have had far less postponements and rescheduling of games than the NCAA thus far. So why is that? The answer lies within the question. Those are professional sports. Albeit tiresome for NBA players to go to work, back to their hotel, not seeing family for many months out of the year is difficult, it is their job. It is foolish to expect the same from college students, receiving no income for their play from the NCAA (another argument in its own right). It is only February 1st and we have seen college programs across the nation have to adjust their schedules, travel plans, and available players due to coronavirus. Now top teams are mulling over the decision to forego their conference tournaments in an attempt to stay healthy for March Madness. The entirety of this makes for an ingenuine end of the season and generally confusing road to the postseason.

One of the most exciting moments in sports is when a powerhouse school is upset in a road game amassed by thousands of screaming college students. The tradition of court storming has received criticism in recent years due to safety issues. These safety issues were in regard to getting trampled in a throng of fans, now it would be in regard to violating any social distancing standards a building may have in place. Now the simple idea of rushing the court is completely unfeasible, even if it were to be in a controlled setting where guards could ensure nobody gets hurt. This may have inadvertently solved the gripes people had with it, but many would still say it takes away from a distinct element of college basketball.

The NCAA can continue to attempt to proceed with confusing scheduling and empty arenas, but ultimately the season will not resemble anything close to a normal one. Professional sports are also lacking, but do not rely as heavily on crowd atmosphere as their collegiate counterparts. For the time being, many wonder if there is anything the NCAA can do to bring back the one distinguishing characteristic that drives so many fans' love for the game, and the short answer is probably not. It will most likely take a few years for college basketball to regain form, and this is no knock on the NCAA for making an attempt to salvage seasons mid-pandemic, but more so them simply doing their best with the hand they’ve been dealt. When college basketball has finally re-established its exciting, unpredictable nature, whenever that may be, expect fans of all ages to be more than ready.