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NIC BASKETBALL: Conference play pushed back due to COVID

| December 29, 2021 1:25 AM

By JASON ELLIOTT

Sports writer

The Northwest Athletic Conference has pushed back the start of conference play in both men’s and women’s basketball due to the coronavirus pandemic according to an email from conference executive director Marco Azurdia.

“After meeting with the men’s and women’s basketball committee members, discussions with representatives from the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee and the NWAC Executive Board, the NWAC has decided to delay the start of the league season from Jan. 5 to Jan. 17, 2022,” Azurdia said in the email.

The NIC men’s basketball team was scheduled to play in a NWAC Crossover Tournament, but received two forfeits due to the virus Dec. 17-18. The NIC women’s basketball team had its first game in a crossover tournament canceled due to COVID as well.

Reasons for the move include: scheduling issues in December with projected January numbers getting worse before a dramatic fall into the winter months; with the new variant, it gives the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee time to review and adjust safety protocols for basketball to try and keep people as safe as possible. The committee is planning to meet today or Thursday to develop updated protocols.

In addition, the move allows student-athletes returning from the holiday break to get tested and, if needed, isolate and quarantine athletes and coaches.

League games scheduled from Jan. 5 to Jan. 17 will be moved to the final two weeks of the season, with the NWAC Tournament scheduled for March 17-20 and March 26-27 at Everett Community College.

NIC is now scheduled to open conference play at Blue Mountain Community College of Pendleton, Ore., on Monday, Jan. 17.

NIC’s women don’t have another nonconference game scheduled as of yet. The Cardinals only played twice in December.

“We’ve got one more scrimmage that we can use and we’re going to try for something next week,” NIC women’s basketball coach Korina Baker said. “We haven’t been told no quite yet.”

Seven women’s basketball games were canceled on Tuesday, with the rest of this week’s schedule also wiped out.

The NIC men’s basketball game on Jan. 3 against the North Idaho All-Stars has been postponed and will be made up closer to the start of conference play.

“Our athletes did everything they could to stay safe,” NIC men’s basketball coach Corey Symons said. “We’ll control what we can control and move on to the next day.”

“I’m just hoping we can avoid anything like last year,” Baker said. “As of now, we’re still going to get a season.”

Baker added the players are still tested before road trips and game days.

“So far, the girls have had some colds, but nothing too serious,” Baker said. “We haven’t had any problems so far.”

This fall, NIC’s volleyball team went unbeaten in conference play, but was forced to forfeit eight matches due to COVID and did not qualify for the conference tournament.