GREENSBORO, N.C. — Duke is pulling out of the ACC tournament and ending its season due to a positive test within its men’s basketball program, team spokesman Mike DeGeorge told The News & Observer Thursday morning.
The Blue Devils will not play in Thursday night’s ACC tournament quarterfinal game with Florida State. The positive test involves one of the team’s walk-ons and contract tracing would have made multiple Blue Devils players unavailable.
“We are disappointed we cannot keep fighting together as a group after two outstanding days in Greensboro,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said in a statement. “This season was a challenge for every team across the country and as we have seen over and over, this global pandemic is very cruel and is not yet over. As many safeguards as we implemented, no one is immune to this terrible virus.”
The Blue Devils beat Louisville, 70-56, on Wednesday night at the Greensboro Coliseum. As is done after all ACC tournament games, the players were administered COVID-19 tests following the game. Duke’s team then returned to Durham by bus as they have done throughout the ACC tournament.
When the ACC reported the positive test result, follow-up testing by Duke’s medical staff early Thursday morning confirmed the positive result. Contact tracing steps followed.
“After working with our medical professionals and following Duke and ACC Medical Advisory Group health, safety, and contact tracing protocols, the student-athletes on our team are now in quarantine,” Duke athletic director Kevin White said in a statement. “Since last March when the pandemic started, we have listened to our medical experts and always put safety at the forefront of any determinations regarding competition. As a result, this will end our 2020-21 season. We wish every team still playing college basketball good health and the very best during the next few weeks.”
Attempting to avoid possible exposure to the virus, the Blue Devils returned to campus after trips to Greensboro Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday rather than stay in their ACC-assigned hotel with multiple other teams. Throughout this pandemic-altered season, the Blue Devils stayed at the Washington Duke Inn to protect themselves.
Duke’s campus, however, has seen a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases this week. That includes the athletic department, where the football team paused its spring practices with 10 students in isolation following positive COVID-19 tests.
On Wednesday, the school announced more than 100 cases of COVID-19 linked to Greek life parties and fraternity rush events. School administration is threatening to halt in-person classes and institute a curfew, the N&O previously reported.
Coach K reflects on a season altered by pandemic
The basketball team’s COVID-19 positive test knocks the Blue Devils out of any postseason tournaments since both the NCAA and NIT tournaments require seven consecutive days without a positive test arriving for tournament play.
Duke (13-11) had won ACC tournament games Tuesday and Wednesday to climb back into postseason consideration.
“While our season was different than any other that I can remember, I loved the 2020-21 Duke Basketball team and was honored to be their coach,” Krzyzewski said. “We have not asked more of any team in our history, and they deserve enormous credit for handling everything like the outstanding young men they are. I feel deeply for our players, who have done a terrific job all season in taking care of each other and the team. I am extremely proud of their collective attitudes and effort, which could not have been stronger.”
The ACC tournament will go on without Duke, spokesman Andy Fledderjohann said. The conference on Thursday morning examined whether there were any contact tracing issues that could affect other teams. However, the ACC did not find any through the Kinexon contract tracing system, sensors all players, coaches and staffs are wearing.
Louisville basketball spokesman Kenny Klein released a statement saying the Cardinals don’t expect their exposure to Duke during Wednesday’s game to impact their postseason availability.
“Test results for all U of L Tier 1 individuals following last night’s game were negative and we are confident through the ACC’s use of Kinexon digital proximity technology that we will not experience any contact tracing that would affect our team,” the statement said. “Our group is tested daily and on a path to have the requisite consecutive days of negative tests to be able to compete in the NCAA Tournament.”
An ACC spokesperson said commissioner Jim Phillips would not comment on Duke’s withdrawal nor its implications for the tournament.
Because of Duke ending its season, Florida State advances to the ACC tournament semifinals and will play the winner of Thursday night’s North Carolina-Virginia Tech game. That game will now start at 8:30 p.m.
Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton saw his own team go through COVID-19-related pauses that postponed and canceled games this season, including a Jan. 2 home game with Duke that was not played. Speaking on a Zoom call with reporters Thursday morning, he sympathized with Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils.
“It’s unfortunate that we’re not going to be able to play,” Hamilton said,” for his kids and for ours. We all know that Coach K is a class act and he does things the right way. It’s unfortunate that it happened.”
No previous coronavirus pauses for Duke
Duke’s men’s basketball team had made it through the entire season without having to pause activities or miss a game due to COVID-19 issues within its program. It didn’t allow spectators or media other than ESPN to attend games at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Krzyzewski missed one game in early January while he and his wife, Mickie, were quarantining after their daughter, Debbie Savarino and one of her teenage daughters, tested positive in late December. Mike and Mickie Krzyzewski were tested daily while quarantining at their home and came up negative for COVID-19 each time.
Savarino’s son, Michael, is a walk-on player for Duke. He also tested negative at that time.
The Duke women’s basketball team canceled its season in late December following positive cases in their program. The players, citing heath and safety concerns, decided they didn’t want to play during the pandemic.
Duke’s men’s team had games with Pittsburgh and Florida State postponed, and ultimately canceled, due to COVID-19 issues in those programs. The Blue Devils also didn’t play scheduled non-conference home games with Elon, Gardner-Webb and Charleston Southern when those teams were unavailable to COVID-19 positive tests and contact tracing.
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Luke DeCock contributed.
