NCAA
(Photo : Reuters)

Long lists of March Madness games are now canceled due to the widespread of pandemic coronavirus that continues to swell around the world.

No one is immune to the virus. It has even reached and infected players of the National Basketball Association that leads to the suspension of its season. 

This is not the first time that a major league decided either to cancel or play its games in empty arenas. There have been many major leagues around the world who did it first like the European sports league who first decided to have their games played in empty arenas.

This time, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) announced on Thursday the cancelation of the Men's and Women's Division I Basketball tournament due to the increasing cases of coronavirus in the country. The decision was made abruptly because the season is supposed to end in less than a month and a new team is supposed to be crowned as the league's new champion.

It can be recounted in the previous report of Latin Post, that NCAA has announced its March Madness events that include the interactive Bracket Tournament Challenge. Schedules were already posted and are supposed to be played in empty arenas.

However, it was decided a day after that all scheduled events will all be canceled. The decision was made following the decision of American Major Leagues from NBA to MLB to stop its season until the effect of the pandemic COVID-19 deteriorates. 

Moreover, NCAA has also canceled all of its scheduled spring championships in every sport that includes hockey, baseball, and lacrosse. There are also other sports organizations who either decide to cancel the season or are limiting the attendance of the event.

The following the are major basketball conferences that were canceled on Thursday:

  • SEC
  • BIG TEN
  • BIG 12
  • PAC 12
  • ACC
  • BIG EAST
  • BIG SOUTH

Other tournaments have also announced the cancelation of their games. These are: 

  • ATLANTIC 10
  • AAC
  • MAC
  • BIG SKY
  • WAC
  • BIG WEST
  • CONFERENCE USA
  • SUNBELT
  • SOUTHLAND
  • Including Ivy League

The Big Ten Conference recently announced on Twitter that "Based on the latest developments and the continued spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Southeastern Conference today announced the cancellation of the remainder of the 2020 Men's Basketball Tournament in Nashville."

The conference also noted that their main priority right now is the health, safety, and wellness of their student-athletes, coaches, administrators, fans, and media as they continue to monitor relevant information about the pandemic COVID-19 that has infected more than 120,000 around the world. 

The decision of the American sports leagues to cancel its season both for the Professional and Student-athletes is a good move to control the spread of COVID-19 which continues to swell in the United States. 

Even though this meant that billions of dollars will be wasted because of the cancellation of the tournament, still the health and safety of the players, coaches, media, and other essential persons in the league are their top priority. If they will push through the tournaments amidst the COVID-19 crisis, the healthcare service of the country will be challenged to provide the medical needs of infected COVID-19 patients.