Mar 12, 2020

Big 12 cancels championship events through April 15

Posted Mar 12, 2020 4:33 PM

The Big 12 is canceling all of its championships through April 15, including basketball plus upcoming gymnastics and equestrian meets, and will reassess the rest of its spring sports schedule April 15.

Commissioner Bob Bowlsby said he anticipated a conference-wide policy for spring football, though athletic directors have not yet discussed a plan.

The league anticipates a heavy financial hit from refunded ticket sales to its men's and women's basketball tournaments and having to adjust the rights fees it receives from its TV partners.

Bowlsby also said that nobody from the conference, including staff members, coaches and players, had fallen ill or been tested for coronavirus.

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The biggest conferences in college sports all canceled their basketball tournaments because of the new coronavirus, seemingly putting the NCAA Tournament in doubt. The Power 5 conferences are the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and Southeastern Conference.

Within minutes of each other, they announced that the remainder of their tournaments would not be played. All were preparing to play games in large arenas, but with few people in the buildings.

Following the NCAA's lead on Wednesday, most college conferences announced that their basketball tournaments would be conducted with limited fan access. By Thursday, after the NBA suspended its season Wednesday night, several Division I conferences including the Big 12 decided not to play at all.