College basketball COVID update: Louisville’s Chris Mack tests positive, Pitt game postponed

Louisville men's basketball coach Chris Mack has tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss the Cardinals' Saturday game at Virginia Tech, the school announced Sunday night.

The news came with another postponement: Louisville's game against Pittsburgh at 9 p.m. Wednesday at the KFC Yum Center has been pushed back due to additional positive tests, quarantining and contact tracing within the Cardinals' program. 

The team (11-4, 6-3 ACC) is scheduled to return to action on the Hokies' court at noon Saturday, barring any other setbacks. It will be led by assistant coach Dino Gaudio this week at practice and in the game.

Mack, who's experiencing mild symptoms, will follow protocols and communicate virtually with the team and his staff while he is away from the program.

The Pitt postponement is Louisville's third in a row following identical decisions for the Syracuse and Virginia games. The list of Cardinals' postponements is now up to five and includes home outings against NC State and Boston College. 

The likelihood of all five games being made up appears unlikely considering limited dates remaining the existing regular-season schedule. Louisville has six originally scheduled games on tap through March 6. The ACC Championship is March 9-13 in Greensboro, N.C.

The Cardinals' last game was Feb. 1, a 74-58 win over Georgia Tech.

Louisville's Chris Mack looks on during a play.
01/18/21 (Photo: Scott Utterback/Courier Journal)

Shannon Russell, Louisville Courier Journal. 

Florida at Tennessee men's game postponed

Following the postponement of Saturday’s contest at LSU, the Florida men’s basketball team’s next scheduled contest, Wednesday at Tennessee, has been postponed as well for the same reasons — a combination of positive tests, contact tracing and subsequent quarantining of individuals within the Gators program.

A make-up date has not been determined for either contest, and UF may have difficulty rescheduling both as the conclusion of the regular season nears. 

In addition to the latest postponements, Florida has yet to set dates for four previously postponed games in December, and in all likelihood they won’t be rescheduled. As of now, Florida’s next scheduled contest is Feb. 13 at home vs. Texas A&M. 

Graham Hall, Gainesville Sun.

Source: Read Full Article