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The Atlantic 10 Conference announced that it won’t permit handshakes between players before or after games in its upcoming postseason conference tournaments. The league is also expected to provide sanitizing gel to teams to use in locker rooms.
The University of Dayton Arena will host the women’s basketball tournament this weekend, Friday, March 6 Sunday, through March 8; while the men’s tournament will take place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn from Wednesday, March 11 through Sunday, March 15.
The Dayton men's team just clinched the regular-season Atlantic 10 men's title, has a 17-game winning streak, 27-2 record and is ranked No. 3 in the nation in both the Associated Press poll and coaches' rankings. Former Ossining High School standout Obi Toppin, a 6-foot-9 red-shirt sophomore forward for Dayton, is a national plaer of the year finalist.
The conference advised athletes to go with “forearm bumps” instead of post-game handshakes. The announcement came this and is a response to the “potential spread of the coronavirus.”
"The league is in communication with its member institutions, medical personnel, competition venues, and media partners," the conference said in a released statement.
"The A-10 will continue to update its members throughout championship season and reminds student-athletes, coaches, staff and fans to be diligent in following the recommended health and safety precautions to prevent the spread of coronavirus.”
The move comes as some leagues overseas began playing games in empty arenas and stadiums to help slow down the spread of COVID-19.
The NCAA also formed an advisory panel this week to review processes to handle the coronavirus threat, though no formal recommendations have been made with their biggest event just weeks away.
“The NCAA is committed to conducting its championships and events in a safe and responsible manner,” Donald Remy, NCAA COO said. “Today we are planning to conduct our championships as planned, however, we are evaluating the COVID-19 situation daily and will make decisions accordingly."
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