At what can only be described as truly the 11th hour, the Big Sky Basketball tournament has announced they are the next in a series of large-scale events to cancel due to the Coronavirus.

The tournament, which was scheduled from March 9-14 at the Century Link Arena in Boise, has been cancelled for all remaining games for both the men and the women.

First reported by the Idaho Statesman shortly after 10:30 on Thursday, March 12, the cancellation affects the women’s championship game, which would have pitted Idaho against Montana State on Friday, and the final seven games of the men’s tournament, which was set to resume at noon Thursday with the quarterfinals.

“This decision was not made lightly, as we know how meaningful our basketball championships is to our student-athletes, coaches, alumni, and fans,” Commissioner Tom Wistrcill said in a prepared statement. “After consulting with medical experts, local authorities, and the leadership of our institutions, we feel that this decision is prudent given the health and well-being of all involved.

The Big Sky Conference has acknowledged that refund policy and procedure will be announced soon, but details are not available as of publishing.

As for other college playoff and championship news, NCAA president Mark Emmert announced that all Division I men's and women's basketball tournament games will be played in arenas without fans.

The NBA is the league in America that has been most affected. They suspended the 2019-20 season on Wednesday night after a Utah Jazz star Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19.

As college basketball's postseason, Major League Baseball's opening day and the NBA and NHL pre-playoff season climax's approach, the coronavirus is set to have a serious effect on American sports. Abroad, soccer games in Europe are already being played in empty arenas without fans in certain countries.

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