Mike Krzyzewski said his players "need a break mental health wise" and they "loved" the decisionDUKE
Duke will "not play any more nonconference men’s basketball games this season," opting to "only play ACC opponents who must adhere to the same health and safety protocols for dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic," according to Steve Wiseman of the Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said his players "need a break mental health wise. They need a break. And so we made that decision and my team loved it." The move "allows Duke’s players to see their families for the first time since last summer when the athletes arrived on campus and entered the school’s strict testing and quarantine protocols." Krzyzewski after a loss to Illinois on Tuesday said that playing games as the pandemic continues to spread "didn’t 'feel right' and that the situation should be reassessed" (Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER, 12/11). Krzyzewski added, "These kids need to be with their families, at least for a little bit. So we will play the Notre Dame game on Dec. 16, and then allow our team four or five days at home before returning here to prepare for the remainder of our ACC schedule" (ESPN.com, 12/10).
ON THE FLIP SIDE: In Birmingham, Michael Casagrande noted Alabama men's basketball coach Nate Oats on Thursday "took a swing at peers," including Krzyzewski, for "calling for a COVID-19 pause to the young season." Oats: “Can I ask you something? Do you think if Coach K hadn’t lost the two non-conference games at home he’d still be saying that?” Casagrande wrote Oats is a "big proponent of playing through the pandemic." He said, "We have a whole lot more problems if we weren’t playing games" (BIRMINGHAM NEWS, 12/11).
PLAYING WITH FIRE? THE UNDEFEATED's Jesse Washington wrote if high-level college sports "did not 'preach education but vote money,' the games would pause until the coronavirus pandemic was no longer out of control." The NCAA "appears to be barreling toward disaster." The virus has "already ripped through dozens of teams," and college programs are "burning through tens of thousands of tests." Trying to track this season’s canceled games is "like playing sudoku and whack-a-mole while juggling." Washington: "The NCAA’s head is buried in the sand because of money" (THEUNDEFEATED.com, 12/10).
