DePaul hasn’t even played its Big East opener and already is 0-1 in the conference.
The Blue Demons on Saturday canceled Monday’s scheduled home game against Creighton because of “positive COVID-19 results within the DePaul program.”
The Blue Demons (9-1) forfeited the game and, per Big East policy, take the conference-only loss while Creighton gets the win. It will not affect DePaul’s overall record and will go down as a “no contest,” per NCAA rules.
It was the second DePaul game to be canceled in three days because of COVID-19 issues. The Blue Demons’ game against Northwestern, originally set for Saturday in Evanston, was scratched.
On Friday, Loyola announced it has positive cases in the program and won’t play its next two games. The Ramblers were scheduled to play Norfolk State on Sunday and Davidson on Wednesday. Neither game will be made up.
“The health and safety of student-athletes, coaches and staff, as well as the Loyola and broader communities is the primary concern of Loyola Athletics,” the school said in a statement.
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Also on Saturday, the game between No. 18 Tennessee and Memphis was canceled about an hour before tipoff because of COVID-19 issues within the Tigers program. The Volunteers had warmed up and were ready to play when the game was called off at 9:54 a.m. with several hundred fans already in attendance. Tipoff had been scheduled for 11 a.m.
Memphis players did not enter the arena. It was not clear exactly how many players were in the COVID-19 protocols. The game was to be played in Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, a midway point between the two programs’ campuses.
Meanwhile, No. 6 Alabama announced it will play Davidson on Tuesday night at Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama. The matchup was set after No. 23 Colorado State had to pull out of the game with the Crimson Tide and Loyola couldn’t play Davidson on Wednesday night, both because of COVID-19 issues.
The No. 4 Arizona women’s game against No. 11 Texas on Sunday in Las Vegas also was canceled because of COVID-19 protocols and contact tracing within the Wildcats program.
The Coast-to-Coast Challenge is working with Texas to find a suitable replacement opponent.