NCAA Extends Eligibility for Spring-Sport Students, Basketball Athletes Denied

NCAA Extends Eligibility for Spring-Sport Students, Basketball Athletes Denied

The NCAA has announced student athletes competing in spring sports will be granted an extra year of eligibility due to the coronavirus pandemic, meaning basketball is among the sports left in the cold.

The COVID-19 outbreak saw effectively all major professional and college sports halted in mid-March, which saw March Madness and a host of other tournaments brought to an abrupt end.

It’s now been confirmed the winter-sport seasons will not be granted special dispensation to finish as many feared. A statement released via the official NCAA website said the Division I Council voted to allow schools to give spring-sport athletes an “additional season of competition and an extension of their period of eligibility.” Visit Bet365 NJ for updated 2020 NBA Championship odds and bonus offers when the calendar gets back underway.

Although the decision is in line with what was expected to come from the governing body, many students in their final years will be disappointed not to finish college in the manner they hoped.

The NCAA statement said: “Winter sports were not included in the decision. Council members declined to extend eligibility for student-athletes in sports where all or much of their regular seasons were completed.”

The coronavirus has resulted in more than 44,000 deaths from almost 900,000 confirmed cases worldwide as of Wednesday, per the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

The 2020 NBA Draft is still scheduled for June 25, though ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski recently told SportsCenter it may not take place until this season’s Finals ended in August or September (via Forbes).