North Carolina released a joint statement on Tuesday from its men's basketball players and managers apologizing for breaking COVID-19 protocol Saturday night after the Tar Heels' 91-87 win at Duke:
"Saturday night, a number of players and managers — not just the ones shown on the video that was seen — got together to celebrate our win at Duke. Our intention was to celebrate privately within our group. Unfortunately, we allowed several friends who are not members of the team to join the gathering. We were inside and not wearing masks, which were mistakes. We apologize for not adhering to the University's and athletic department's guidelines and apologize to Coach (Roy) Williams and his staff for not stepping forward when he first addressed it with us on Sunday. We have worked too hard for eight months doing the right things to make those kinds of mistakes at this point in the season. We are hopeful we will be able to play again soon and wish to remind everyone to stay safe so this pandemic will be over as soon as possible."
Sophomore forward Armando Bacot and freshman forward Day'Ron Sharpe were the only two players who appeared on a Snapchat video that showed a room full of maskless people and was initially reported by The Daily Tar Heel.
As a result of the video, the Heels' game against Miami on Monday was canceled about two hours before it was set to tip off. The Hurricanes had already made the trip to Chapel Hill on Sunday and began talks with the ACC and UNC representatives Monday afternoon once the program learned of the video.
"I appreciate the players voicing their apology, they made a mistake," Williams said in a statement. "They've been fantastic for more than eight months in the way they have dealt with the whole situation with the virus. But they realize they did make a mistake, for which they are paying a very significant price."
The Tar Heels are scheduled to play at first-place Virginia on Saturday.
