The NCAA this afternoon canceled the men's and women's basketball tournaments, as well as the remaining winter and spring NCAA championships, due to coronavirus. The NCAA in a statement said it made the decision to "ensure the events do not contribute to spread of the pandemic, and the impracticality of hosting such events at any time during this academic year given ongoing decisions by other entities" (NCAA).

The NHL is "going on hiatus" and suspending the '19-20 season amid the coronavirus outbreak. Commissioner Gary Bettman in a statement said that the league "hopes to be able to return to action and hold the Stanley Cup playoffs 'as soon as it is appropriate and prudent.'" The NHL used the word "pause" and explained its "reasoning to follow the lead of the NBA and other leagues in shutting down for now." The league has completed 85% of its regular season. All teams had canceled practices and morning skates today as Bettman "conferred with owners" and the NHLPA about "next steps" (TORONTO STAR, 3/12).

Meanwhile, sources said that Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker "has been recommending to the owners of Chicago's professional sports teams that statewide major sporting events should be shut down until possibly May 1." Pritzker, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle will hold a 5:00pm CT press conference today (THEATHLETIC.com, 3/12).

MLB has canceled the rest of Spring Training and is "delaying the start of the regular season by at least two weeks" in reaction to the spreading coronavirus. Commissioner Rob Manfred and the 30 owners had a conference call this afternoon to "finalize a decision." MLB was "initially steadfast about continuing both spring training and beginning the season on time," but day by day, that stance "became more untenable as the virus spread." One source said that the "NBA suspension was the game changer" (N.Y. POST, 3/12). MLB reportedly "will ask players to stay at spring sites where they have access to team medical personnel, can continue to work out and will not be fanning out across the country" (TWITTER.com, 3/12).

Meanwhile, Chris Stapleton's performance scheduled to open the Rangers' Globe Life Field on Saturday has been postponed. A rescheduled date is in the works, and all previously purchased tickets will be honored for the new date (Rangers).

The Big East today became the final major conference to cancel their men's basketball tournament, making the call after the first half of St. John's-Creighton was played as scheduled. FS1's Chris Mullin said the conference made the right decision, though it came "maybe a little bit late." He added, "I thought maybe the NCAA should have stepped in instead of having each conference making their decisions on their own." However, FS1's Tim Brando said it is "hard not to look at what we just did and say that bad optics didn't play a role in this game being called at halftime" ("Big East Tournament," FS1, 3/12). ESPN's Rece Davis called the Big East's move to start playing games “inexplicable.” He said, “The optics of it were unconscionable, perplexing" (ESPN, 3/12).

ACC Commissioner John Swofford this morning was confident that the league's tournament would continue as planned, but both Florida State and Clemson were pulled off the court before the start of their quarterfinal game. Swofford said, "We sat down and spoke with several of our coaches, several of our institutions, and also spoke with my colleagues at the other A5 conferences, and they were getting the same vibes. ... We then took it to our full presidents and athletic directors for a discussion." With several ACC schools on the verge of deciding not to play the spring sports schedule, he said, "It was my recommendation to curtail this tournament and move forward with our discussions about our spring sports, and they unanimously agreed with that” (ESPN, 3/12).

Meanwhile, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey talked to ESPN from the court at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena, where the second round of his league's tournament was set to take place today. He said that some "indications of change within the NCAA" and its medical advisory panel led to the conference cancelling the event. Sankey called making the recommendation to cancel the "first time I've become emotional" during his five years as commissioner. He added, "The leadership of the five conferences are remarkable people, and the ability to communicate and work across these five conferences has been something that is a tribute to intercollegiate athletics" (ESPN, 3/12).

The NFL has canceled its March 29-April 1 annual meeting amid widespread travel and business disruptions due to the spreading coronavirus, according to a memo sent by Commissioner Roger Goodell to team officials today. Most agenda items will shift to the already-scheduled spring meeting set for May 19-20 in L.A. League execs will speak directly to clubs during the days originally set aside for the upcoming meeting. Goodell said in the memo, "We are exploring certain alternatives that would allow for a productive, orderly review and discussion of the issues that were on the agenda for the annual meeting, as well as issues related to the coronavirus."

Hundreds of people were set to gather at The Breakers Palm Beach for the annual meeting, including owners, their families, team and league execs, coaches and GMs. Instead, more of those staffers will join the May meeting, which is normally a smaller affair. Likely agenda items for the canceled meeting included the NFL’s plan to give teams local marketing rights in certain overseas territories, and possible changes to the pass interference replay review rules.

However, the league has not altered the start of the league year, set for Wednesday, and the April Draft went unmentioned in the memo. That means the free agency calendar is following the status quo for now, despite decisions by a growing number of teams to pull their pre-Draft scouting teams off travel, or to limit travel. The Browns, Steelers, Vikings, Eagles and Redskins are among teams that have made such changes.

Goodell’s memo, and an ensuing public statement by the league, came after some clubs were growing frustrated on Thursday with the league’s silence. While the NFL does not face the same crisis that basketball, hockey, soccer and baseball leagues do, the travel restrictions raised competitive fairness issues as they relate to Draft preparation.

PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said that "all three professional tours" -- PGA Tour, Champions and Korn Ferry -- will conduct events "without fans present through mid-April, including the final three rounds" of The Players Championship this week. Affected tournaments include the Valspar Championship, WGC Dell Technologies Match Play and Valero Texas Open. The Tour decided around midnight last night to "play the first round and allow fans" today at TPC Sawgrass. Monahan changed the Tour's stance after "consulting with President Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and health-care professionals." Fans who decided not to attend today, or those with "tickets for the rest of the week, will get refunds" (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 3/12).

There has been some impact felt outside the ropes at The Players, as attendance at the Tour's annual sponsorship summit held at the Marriott Sawgrass yesterday saw a 10-15% drop in attendance due to corporate travel bans (John Lombardo, THE DAILY).

After a tumultuous 24 hours across the sports business, the latest installment of "SBJ Unpacks" has former NBA, NFL and MLB team exec Andy Dolich taking us inside the minds of his peers, and behind the decisions they face.

The Winston-Salem Open named Jeff Ryan its new Tournament Dir. Ryan takes over the ATP 250 event, while hanging on to his current job as USTA Senior Dir of Team Events. Through that job, he has brought a half-dozen Davis Cup and Fed Cup ties to North Carolina since '01. Winston-Salem Professional Tennis BOD Chair Don Flow said, "Jeff's history here means that he comes into the Winston-Salem Open with a deep appreciation of the tennis community and the army of volunteers who have been responsible for these great tennis experiences over the years."

The 56-year-old Ryan previously worked for IMG, was a member of the U.S. Open’s senior leadership team, served as Tournament Dir in Memphis and participated in more than 100 pro tennis events. The '20 Winston-Salem Open is scheduled for Aug. 23-29, the event immediately preceding the U.S. Open.

NASCAR is "expected to run without spectators/fans at Atlanta and Homestead due to coronavirus," according to sources (TWITTER.com, 3/12).

President Trump today said that officials "should consider delaying" the Tokyo Games for one year amid the coronavirus outbreak. Trump said that the event "would not be the same without spectators" (REUTERS, 3/12).

The Pro Football HOF postponed its Fan Fest scheduled for March 21-22 as a safeguard against the outbreak (Pro Football HOF).

The CFL's '20 edition of Touchdown Atlantic is a "sellout with all 10,000 tickets currently available purchased." The Toronto Argonauts-Saskatchewan Roughriders game in Halifax is slated for July 25 (CP, 3/11).

Easton has added Dodgers 3B Justin Turner to its roster of MLB endorsers (Easton).

"It's gotta happen. This is so much bigger than sports. I've got two kids" -- Dodgers P David Price, on MLB's decision to suspend operations temporarily (TWITTER.com, 3/12).

"Seeing the girls' game grow, it's great. It's about kids getting the opportunity to play. If girls are falling in love with it and enjoying the whole thing, I'm happy to hear that" -- Penguins C Sidney Crosby, on the growth of his own girls' youth hockey program (THEATHLETIC.com, 3/12).

So Duke and Kansas take themselves out of NCAA Tourney before NCAA has wisdom/courage/willingness to give up TV money (for now) and postpone tournament themselves. Of course.

— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) March 12, 2020

As much flack as Rudy Golbert is getting, he may have saved others lives by being the first and ultimately forcing the NBA, and other leagues to make serious decisions for public health.

— Julie Stewart-Binks (@JSB_TV) March 12, 2020

Times like this are why empathy is such an important skill to possess as a marketer

— Matthew Kobach (@mkobach) March 12, 2020

I had a feeling that someday ESPN Classic would be its highest rated network.

— Brian Bedol (@brizilla) March 12, 2020

If the suspension of the season lasts a very long time -- like if play cannot resume until it's summer, MLB should just radically re-do the schedule and turn it into a big-ass tournament with multiple 7-9-game series or something. It'd be boss.

— Craig Calcaterra (@craigcalcaterra) March 12, 2020

If you see a tweet we will not want to miss, send it to us at editorial@sportsbusinessdaily.com.

Unfortunately we have to wrap up and leave without playing a tournament here in the states! I'm very sorry for all the fans and people who worked hard the entire year to make these tournaments special and unique. pic.twitter.com/qyfSjsdgdo

— Dominic Thiem (@ThiemDomi) March 12, 2020

U.S. hurdler and sprinter Sydney McLaughlin has launched a YouTube channel that will feature a blend of content, including original segments produced by Eight Seven Media and New Balance.

30 -- New jobs created at Argosy Casino Alton in Alton, Ill., by the start of sports betting in the state. The riverboat casino opened its sportsbook at 2:00pm CT today, "earlier than originally expected" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 3/12).