January 3, 2022 |
In sports, Covid has disrupted the start of the Mountain West basketball season. More than six dozen conference matchups have been postponed over the last week because of virus-related protocols. The latest cancellation is tomorrow night’s game that had Wyoming at Nevada.
On Saturday, the Cowboys’ conference opener in Laramie with Boise State was postponed. The decision to scrub the game was announced about a half-hour before the scheduled 2-o’clock tip, disappointing fans who had driven to Laramie on icy roads. Radio stations which carry Cowboy games were notified by email at 1:33 p.m. — three minutes after the scheduled start of the pregame show that the game and the broadcast had been scrubbed.
The last minute decision resulted in dead-air on some stations, including KTGA. The official announcement from the University of Wyoming wasn’t released until 1:51 p.m. — nine minutes before the scheduled tip. The statement said the issue was “due to Covid-related concerns within the Boise State” team. If the game cannot be rescheduled, it will be declared a no contest.
On Saturday night, the Cowgirls announced that their home conference opener with Boise State scheduled for tonight was postponed. No reason was given for the cancelled game in the statement.
The Cowgirls opened league play on Friday in Las Vegas without four of their starters due to Covid issues. Head Coach Gerald Mattinson described the hellish road trip from Laramie to Las Vegas.
The Cowgirls lost the conference opener to UNLV 66-60,but not without a fight. With two of their best players sidelined Friday, the Cowgirls got off to a slow start. At the half, Wyoming was down ten against a hot-shooting Rebels team—the top scoring team in the league. The deficit grew to 17 by the end of the third quarter.
Wyoming entered the game with out McKinley Bradshaw, the Cowgirls leading scorer, and Alba Sanchez-Ramos, the top rebounder. Covid protocols meant neither could play.
Quinn Weidemann, Tommi Olson and Allyson Fertig picked up the slack. All scored in double digits. With help from a strong defensive effort, Wyoming fought back and had a chance to take the lead with less than a minute to go.
UNLV hit their free throws in the waning seconds and held on for the win. Head Coach Gerald Mattinson said he was happy with the effort.
Mattinson said after the game that he was uncertain about the status of tonight’s game with Boise State. The university released a statement Saturday night saying it had been postponed with no scheduled make-good date. Wyoming is not alone. Due to COVID-19-related concerns within the Fresno State women’s basketball program, the Bulldogs’ contests at San José State on Jan. 3 and at home against Colorado State on Jan. 6 have been postponed.
Last week, two Mountain West men’s basketball games were postponed—Tuesday’s matchup between CSU and New Mexico, as well as Wednesday’s scheduled game between Nevada and San Jose State. On Saturday, in addition to the Wyoming – Boise State game, two other matchups were crossed off the board: Air Force at Fresno State and San Jose State at Utah State.
