Bona-GW postponed due after Colonials report positive test

photo courtesy of gobonnies.sbu.edu

ST. BONAVENTURE, NY — Another day and another postponement within Atlantic 10 men’s basketball.

St. Bonaventure’s contest against George Washington, slated for noon Saturday at the Reilly Center, was postponed Friday amid COVID-19 concerns within the Colonials program.

“George Washington notified Atlantic 10 and St. Bonaventure officials of a positive COVID-19 test result from a Tier 1 staff member in the team’s traveling party on Friday,” a statement released by the SBU athletic department read.

Tier 1 personnel includes student-athletes, coaches, athletic trainers and physical therapists, medical staff, equipment staff and officials. According to the statement, the Colonials men’s basketball program will remain on pause per Atlantic 10 coronavirus guidelines until contact tracing and further testing is completed.

The cancelation comes a day after George Washington’s game Wednesday against UMass was also postponed due to a curfew in Washington D.C. following that day’s riots at the United States Capitol.

Both teams have been impacted by the virus on multiple occasions this year, both with opponents dealing with COVID-19 and with cases in the programs themselves.

SBU’s game against Buffalo last month was cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns amongst the Bulls, while the Bonnies were forced to pull out of a tournament at the Mohegan Sun bubble in Connecticut in late November due to a positive test within their Tier 1 personnel.

GW, meanwhile, had a game postponed against William & Mary and a game cancelled against South Carolina due to those programs’ COVID-19 issues.

The Colonials are next scheduled to play Jan. 13 against VCU in Washington, while the Bonnies will be back in action at Fordham the same day.

Buffalo game wiped out by positive test; Bonnies finish shortest non-conference schedule ever

photo courtesy of gobonnies.sbu.edu

By Jeff Uveino

ST. BONAVENTURE, NY — It was bound to happen once. Twice was a coincidence. But after another cancelation, the St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team is facing a non-conference schedule of only two games.

The Bonnies were scheduled to play Buffalo at the Reilly Center on Tuesday, in what would have been their final non-conference game of the 2020-21 season. SBU had previously beaten Akron and Hofstra to earn its first 2-0 start to a season in seven years. After six game cancelations over the past four weeks, however, the program is also looking at the shortest non-conference schedule in its history.

About 30 hours before scheduled tip-off against Buffalo, the Bulls announced that a member of their “Tier 1” personnel, which includes student-athletes, coaches, team managers and support staff, had tested positive for COVID-19. The program was notified of the test result, which came from its regular surveillance testing in accordance with NCAA guidelines, on Sunday.

This comes just nine days after the Bonnies’ scheduled home opener against St. Francis (PA) was canceled due to a positive test within the Red Flash’s program.

Bona was able to christen the RC for the building’s 54th season against Hofstra, which now could end up being the only non-conference game played there this season. SBU was also scheduled to make a trip to the Mohegan Sun Arena bubble in late November, which was canceled due to a positive COVID-19 test within Bona’s program.

Unless SBU adds an opponent to its schedule over the next week, the Bonnies’ next competition will be an Atlantic 10 game. Bona is scheduled to play at Rhode Island on Dec. 30 and at Richmond on Jan. 2, before hosting Saint Joseph’s on Jan. 6 in what will presumably be the team’s A-10 home opener.

If this is indeed how Bona’s non-conference schedule will end, it will be the first time the Bonnies will have gone undefeated in non-conference play. This was the first time since 2013-14 that the team started a season 2-0.

Bona home opener canceled less than two hours before tip-off

photo courtesy of gobonnies.sbu.edu

By Jeff Uveino

ST. BONAVENTURE, NY — After a 283-day hiatus, it appeared as though the St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team would return to the Reilly Center to play its 2020-21 season opener.

The Bonnies were scheduled to play St. Francis (PA) at 2 p.m. on Saturday, until less than two hours before tip-off, the game was canceled due to a positive COVID-19 test.

According to a statement released by the SBU athletic department, a positive test from within St. Francis’ Tier 1 personnel traveling party caused the cancellation of the game. This comes nine days after the Bonnies were able to resume team activities following a 14-day down period because of a positive COVID-19 test within their own program.

As of now, Bona will have to wait until Tuesday to begin its regular season, and wait until Dec. 19 to hold its home opener. SBU is scheduled to play Akron at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland on Tuesday before hosting Hofstra five days later.

With the elimination of the St. Francis game, which will not be rescheduled, the Bonnies only have three non-conference games on their schedule, as they will play Buffalo next week to finish non-conference play.