The Seton Hall men’s basketball team “has paused all team activities due to positive COVID-19 test results,” the school’s athletic department announced Wednesday night.
The cases are reported to be among the program’s Tier 1 personnel, which include student-athletes, coaches, managers and staff. The test results came exactly two weeks before the team’s season opener against Winthrop on Nov. 25 in the Louisville multi-team event.
As per NCAA recommendations, the team is supposed to enter a 14-day quarantine with players remaining isolated from one another but allowed to work out individually. Should Seton Hall follow the guidelines in place, they could be cleared to play as early as Nov. 23. However, a two-day window to prepare for and travel to the tournament puts Seton Hall’s games against Winthrop and Louisville in jeopardy.
“Our number one concern is that we keep everyone safe and healthy,” coach Kevin Willard said in a statement. “Since we returned to campus in July, we have been diligent in following protocols and rigorously tested with no positives until this point.
“But as we’ve seen throughout the country and here locally, COVID-19 cases are on the rise and unfortunately it has reached our program. We will continue to monitor the situation and we look forward to resuming our preparation for the season when it is safe to do so."
Seton Hall is the fourth Big East program to have a positive COVID-19 test result, following Villanova, Marquette, and UConn. The Huskies are still in quarantine after a player reportedly tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this week, according to the Hartford Courant.
Just hours before the announcement from athletics, Seton Hall announced that the campus would pivot to all-remote learning as the number of positive coronavirus cases continues to rise within the University community.
Justin Sousa can be reached at justin.sousa@student.shu.edu. Follow him on Twitter @JustinSousa99.
