Albany men's basketball scraps first three games due to COVID-19 issues

The Albany Great Danes men's basketball team announced multiple schedule changes because of a full-campus pause caused by rising COVID-19 cases. 

Albany's season opener versus the Marist Red Foxes slated for Nov. 28 is now canceled. Additionally, the Great Danes won't participate in the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament at Mohegan Sun. 

Albany was scheduled to face the Drexel Dragons on Dec. 3 and the Quinnipiac Bobcats on Dec. 4. 

The Great Danes haven't practiced since Nov. 2, when a pooled test returned a presumptive positive. SUNY guidelines initiated a full pause for the program on Nov. 10. 

As things stand on Thursday afternoon, Albany is now set to open the campaign versus the UMBC Retrievers on Dec. 19. Because of state guidelines, students and other fans currently are not permitted to attend any Albany home games for the foreseeable future. The university will update attendance guidelines during the 2020-21 season if the situation changes. 

Also on Thursday, the DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball team announced the cancellations of at least the first three games of its campaign because of positive COVID-19 tests within its Tier 1 group and subsequent quarantines. 

NCAA guidelines recommend 14-day quarantines for all Tier 1 individuals if any Tier 1 person associated with a team returns a positive COVID-19 test. 

Over 20 major-conference men's basketball programs have recently paused activities due to coronavirus-related setbacks.