The NJSIAA state basketball tournament continues but fans are no longer allowed to attend. JSZ has the latest press release from the NJSIAA

With nearly every major college sports conference and professional sport suspending competition with the risk of spreading the Coronavirus, the NJSIAA is forging on with their state basketball tournament. Here are the updates heading into Thursday evening’s play:

  • Hackettstown’s boys basketball team has pulled out of the tournament giving Ramsey a forfeit in Group 4.
  • The Manasquan boys have pulled out of the tournament canceling the Warriors game against Camden scheduled for Thursday night in Toms River
  • South Brunswick was forced to forfeit their state semifinal game with Atlantic City after their request for a delay was denied by the NJSIAA
  • One boys state semifinal and four girls state semifinals scheduled for tonight will play but fans will not be admitted
  • There is no location for the six boys state basketball championships
  • The girls state finals will be played in Toms River as scheduled this weekend with no fans allowed

Here’s the press release from the NJSIAA:

UPDATED NJSIAA STATEMENT – Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) (3/11/2020)

As of Wednesday, March 12, there ARE updates to the schedule for the NJSIAA boys and girls basketball tournament games slated for this week.

Based on the CDC Mitigation Strategies (also see below) and the CURRENT community transmission status as reported by the NJ Department of Health, upcoming boys and girls basketball championships events scheduled for TONIGHT will be held under the governor’s mandate with ONLY teams and essential staff – but NO fans. There will be no sanctions or penalties imposed on schools who opt not to participate in tonight’s games. Fans can live-stream the remaining games at https://highschoolsports.nj.com/watch/.  This schedule, and restrictions, are subject to additional modifications based on updates from the CDC and NJ Department of Health. Please continue to monitor NJSIAA’s website and social media platforms for updates.

Decisions regarding future games will be based on the most up-to-date CDC and NJ Department of Health data and guidelines.

Beyond the conclusion of the basketball tournament,  communication regarding spring sports will be made prior to the start of games (March 25 for boys and girls lacrosse and April 1 for all other spring sports).  At this stage, given there is no official interscholastic play, decisions regarding all co- and extracurricular activities – including practices and scrimmages  – rest with individual school administrators.  

All NJSIAA events will continue to follow guidelines established by the CDC as they relate to mass gatherings and large community events.  We continue to ask everyone to follow the prevention guidelines distributed by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Individuals with symptoms that include fever, cough, and shortness of breath should stay home, while travelers returning from affected international locations should follow CDC guidance related to travel.

Virtually all major college basketball conferences, included the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, A-10, and the AAC have canceled their tournaments. The Ivy League, which includes Princeton University, canceled its basketball tournaments and all upcoming spring sports seasons. In addition, the NBA and NHL have suspended their seasons and MLB will open their 2020 season on a two-week delay.

Officials with the MAAC have also announced tournament games in Atlantic City will be closed to the public for the remainder of the week.