Do you expect any form of NCAA tournament?

[NotoriousZ]

It’s just so sad. I feel terrible for the players and the fans. I don’t see any way that they will go on with the tournament at this point. Can’t believe how fast this happened, from the realization of playing the games in an empty Spokane Arena to probably not playing at all.

[HenneZag]

Selfishly I want some type of tournament. I'm heartbroken for all the players who were going to experience this tournament for the first and potentially only time or the last time. I'm especially sad for guys like Gilder and Woolridge that came to GU to experience this. Without the fans there is no atmosphere, emotion and magic. Playing in an environment that is essentially set up like a closed door scrimmage will be tough to watch. I know this option if it happens is better than nothing, but man I'm heartbroken for the kids.

[RenoZag]

Will even a spectatorless or abbreviated version go on?

I do not expect to see NCAA games next week. I expect the Conference tournaments will be cancelled, though there were games played today (and more are slated for the next four days ).

[MDABE80]

MDABE80? DoctorZag? You both have touted your medical credentials and claimed that Covid-19 is overblown and basically similar to the standard to seasonal flu or H1N1.

Any thoughts?

What does "tout" mean to you???

[MDABE80]

I do not expect to see NCAA games next week. I expect the Conference tournaments will be cancelled, though there were games played today (and more are slated for the next four days ).

Reno...I doubt we both could count the number of lawyers in their SUV's circling the Spokane Arena just in case someone (even just one) get sick. None of our lawyers mind you.........lol

[TexasZag]

I only say yes because most players are so young and healthy that symptoms would be less than terrible on the whole. Now when one of the coaches gets it...…. then all bets are off.

I believe most people in decision-making positions realize that it's not just the severity (or lack thereof) with healthy youth, it's that if infected, they become carriers, who will in turn spread the virus to at-risk populations, where mortality rates are much higher than the 3% or so over the total population of confirmed cases to-date.

[75Zag]

I was born a few months after Jonas Salk perfected the polio vaccine, thereby ending 60 years of terror caused by poliomyelitis. I recall lining up with my elementary school class every year to receive our "polio shot" but now polio is more or less extinct except in a few very remote places. Vaccine development has come a long way since March of 1953 but it remains a difficult and exacting science. Recall that HIV was first clinically observed in the USA in 1981 but in the subsequent 39 years nobody has been able to come up with a successful vaccine against that virus. If cancelling one year of March Madness will assist in reducing the number of new infections, it seems a worthwhile sacrifice. Meanwhile, keep your fingers crossed that our top medical research scientists (several of whom graduated from GU) can get a handle on both a vaccine solution and on better treatment options for the elderly and vulnerable populations.

Watch out for each other, and Go Bulldogs!

[LTownZag]

I believe most people in decision-making positions realize that it's not just the severity (or lack thereof) with healthy youth, it's that if infected, they become carriers, who will in turn spread the virus to potentially at-risk populations.

That concept flies over the heads of a frightening percentage of people.

[GrizZAG]

From my reading Doc is correct in that this particular flu virus is another variation of many Corona family of viruses that have been around for some time and hopefully behaves in a similar fashion, that is it wanes as warmer weather comes about which we don't know for certain it will yet. However it blows up again in the fall like the run of the mill flu we see every year. Further it will mutate and be different again at some point like other viruses do all the time.

There are differences and this particular one seems more of a threat with dire consequences since we have no vaccine at this time. Also, the numbers of fatalities of all flu viruses annually is very high, even with the latest flu shots we have now. Elderly are always most at risk even prior to COVID 19. Especially those with co-morbidity issues. I do believe the populace will be much more attuned to sanitary practices because of this event, and I sincerely hope that is the case.

[TexasZag]

Reborn,"worse" is a poor choice of words to describe the natural history of this pandemic. It is going to get more prevalent, but the mortality rate will likely drop as we account for the mildly sick affected like the NBA player. And containment is a popular political position but not a valid scientific position. Containment by quarantine is equivalent to containing the world trade center by closing the fire doors. It may SLOW the progression, but spread is inevitable until a large fraction of the population has been exposed/immune and then "herd immunity" will slow progression. In vaccination studies you need >85% vaccinated to protect the remaining population. I think quarantine is going to prolong a 3-6 month pandemic to a 12-15 month pandemic unless vaccination is successful (trials are starting now at UW).

One of the primary goals of social distancing or containment is to slow the spread of the disease so it does not overwhelm the medical community's capacity to treat it. If too many people get sick at the same time, we'll have a huge mess on our hands. We've already demonstrated that we can't even test yet on a large scale.

[LTownZag]

What does "tout" mean to you???

Referenced your occupation as a self-credentialing of later expressed medical opinions.

How much of this quote from a few days ago do you stand by today, doctor?

Seattle
s got empty streets and looks to be a city who bought the hype. In Spokane there are 4 documented. 2 of those already were discharged home. I doubt any team or even this Inslee character will shy away from Spokane. This is not a huge deal anyway.at least in the US. THe old, chronic disease people (diabetes, congestive heart failure, neuromuscular disease, leukemics, people under RX for a whole host of things .usually are the victims. On the East Side of the mountains, we're doing fine. Mortality has been about what you might expect of a flu or flu variants. It's the media that is forcing the politicians to pay attention. Media, as always, is doing their usual "looks at us" routine. i e clicks.

[MDABE80]

Referenced your occupation as a self-credentialing of later expressed medical opinions.

How much of this quote from a few days ago do you stand by today, doctor?

Self credentialing means?? And noting NO. ie ZERO deaths on this side of the mountains AND that the huge majority of Death in Seattle are exactly what I said......ie older infirm, chronic disease folks with underlying diseases (remember the majority are in the nursing homes), what's your point?? I also said.....not noted by you....was that Tony Fauci, MD was the overwhelming expert in the field and that I'll listen to his advice. Again.your point?? Or do you have a point??? If you do, make it.

I hope you're not just a guy with too much time on his hands babbling for babling's sake.

[kitzbuel]

Self credentialing means?? And noting NO. ie ZERO deaths on this side of the mountains AND that the huge majority of Death in Seattle are exactly what I said......ie older infirm, chronic disease folks with underlying diseases (remember the majority are in the nursing homes), what's your point?? I also said.....not noted by you....was that Tony Fauci, MD was the overwhelming expert in the field and that I'll listen to his advice. Again.your point?? Or do you have a point??? If you do, make it.

We all pray that there be no deaths on your side of the mountains. Thanks for recommending we listen to Dr. Fauci. I think we all need listen to him and be patient with each other.

[sylean]

there are no documented cases of covid in Spokane.......

my guess is that many people have it just very mild, no more then a cold, which is a coronavirus itself....

[MDABE80]

Good response Kitz. I agree. I hope we have some type of tournament. The pageant this NCAA tournament has become will surely be lessened without the crowd. But it is a game and best to not tempt fate to keep people safe.

[Zags11]

https://mobile.twitter.com/RiskyLibe...57911882551296

1% death rate they believe now. False or true?

[gonzagafan62]

https://mobile.twitter.com/RiskyLibe...57911882551296

1% death rate they believe now. False or true?

By the time this pandemic is over it’ll be way less than that. Also there are a lot of people that probably already contracted weren’t tested and recovered. I think 1% is way too high. That’s just confirmed cases too

[FloridaZagFan]

I'm no expert on this thing, and it looks like the vast majority of people who are infected will be okay. However there is so much unknown, precautionary measures seem the only logical move going forward.
Unfortunately I fear that every sporting event or group gathering will either be rescheduled or cancelled moving forward.
I think as humans we would would definitely want experts to clean out a mine field rather than proceed even if we were aware that only a few of the mines might be active!

[OntZags]

By the time this pandemic is over it’ll be way less than that. Also there are a lot of people that probably already contracted weren’t tested and recovered. I think 1% is way too high. That’s just confirmed cases too

While that may be true, the mortality rate really isn't the primary issue.

The real issue is the strain it will cause the health care system. Italy is absolutely floored right now. There aren't enough beds/ventilators anywhere to effectively deal with this. Then you'll have overworked doctors/nurses and other non-covid ICU patients receiving less effective care than they otherwise would.

We might get an unattended March Madness but expecting anything else is a pipe dream at this point.

[Kong-Kool-Aid]

How about having the top 4 teams play in an abbreviated March Madness?

[ZenZag]

To get this under control in China they had to resort to draconian measures. They are an authoritarian country in which they have a much more compliant population. The situation here seems that it could mirror that of Italy, where there seems to be some consensus that they reacted too slowly, and not aggressively enough. That may be more of a model of how this can easily play out in a democratic society where we are not so amenable to being "told what to do". One such aggressive move would be to cancel March Madness. But in this rabidly litigious society, the threat of massive lawsuits will most probably be the true impetus to cancel the tournament. I will mourn if it is cancelled....one of my favorite times of the year, and really sad for all the teams. But the health of our vulnerable populations, into which this virus could easily spread and cause serious complications, and the possibility of completely overwhelming our hospitals, outweighs all other concerns. In my opinion.

[Reborn]

To get this under control in China they had to resort to draconian measures. They are an authoritarian country in which they have a much more compliant population. The situation here seems that it could mirror that of Italy, where there seems to be some consensus that they reacted too slowly, and not aggressively enough. That may be more of a model of how this can easily play out in a democratic society where we are not so amenable to being "told what to do". One such aggressive move would be to cancel March Madness. But in this rabidly litigious society, the threat of massive lawsuits will most probably be the true impetus to cancel the tournament. I will mourn if it is cancelled....one of my favorite times of the year, and really sad for all the teams. But the health of our vulnerable populations, into which this virus could easily spread and cause serious complications, and the possibility of completely overwhelming our hospitals, outweighs all other concerns. In my opinion.

Italy just closed ALL businesses accept pharmacies and grocery stores.

[zagfan24]

By the time this pandemic is over it’ll be way less than that. Also there are a lot of people that probably already contracted weren’t tested and recovered. I think 1% is way too high. That’s just confirmed cases too

I'm really curious why you think 1% is way too high. Not being snarky, just wondering. It seems like a lot of people are making fairly definitive statements based on hunches. We really don't have any idea what the denominator is right now, nor do we know what the overall impact will be.

[Reborn]

Personally, I like Jay Inslee's idea that crowds of 240 or less would be okay and scheduled events could take place if crowds were this small. Translating that into Tournament games it seems it would be okay to play games if the crowds did not exceed 240. The first step for me would be to move the games to smaller gyms, high school gyms where 240 people would be okay. I would have a band there playing in order to maintain an atmosphere of a real game and not a practice. I would also have the cheer leaders and dance teams from both schools for the same reason. Whatever is left, I'd divide evenly between the two schools to have students present to cheer. Of course anyone going to the games would have to be tested. Testing is the key.

In terms of whether or not the games would actually be competitive, I believe that they would be. Every basketball player that would be in the Tournament is HIGHLY competitive. And I mean highly. It's in their makeup. These athletes don't need much in order for that competitive spirit to kick in. Most of these players have played AAU basketball where there were either no crowds or just small crowd of say 240. These guys love to win, and they would give everything they have within themselves to win. The players would be totally aware that they are in the NCAA Tournament, and that the games count as usual. They would be aware that millions of people ARE watching on TV.

For me the key is testing, and so far having the ability to test has been the biggest problem we have had. And I don't get it. And no one gets it. From what I gather from listening to the news is that people just don't understand why these testing kits are not available. We are given numbers of how many people have contracted the virus, but we can NOT be confident that this is a true reflection of how many people really have contracted the virus. Because people are not being tested, we really don't know how many people REALLY have the virus.

Go Zags!!!

[krozman]

Personally, I like Jay Inslee's idea that crowds of 240 or less would be okay and scheduled events could take place if crowds were this small. Translating that into Tournament games it seems it would be okay to play games if the crowds did not exceed 240. The first step for me would be to move the games to smaller gyms, high school gyms where 240 people would be okay. I would have a band there playing in order to maintain an atmosphere of a real game and not a practice. I would also have the cheer leaders and dance teams from both schools for the same reason. Whatever is left, I'd divide evenly between the two schools to have students present to cheer. Of course anyone going to the games would have to be tested. Testing is the key.

In terms of whether or not the games would actually be competitive, I believe that they would be. Every basketball player that would be in the Tournament is HIGHLY competitive. And I mean highly. It's in their makeup. These athletes don't need much in order for that competitive spirit to kick in. Most of these players have played AAU basketball where there were either no crowds or just small crowd of say 240. These guys love to win, and they would give everything they have within themselves to win. The players would be totally aware that they are in the NCAA Tournament, and that the games count as usual. They would be aware that millions of people ARE watching on TV.

For me the key is testing, and so far having the ability to test has been the biggest problem we have had. And I don't get it. And no one gets it. From what I gather from listening to the news is that people just don't understand why these testing kits are not available. We are given numbers of how many people have contracted the virus, but we can NOT be confident that this is a true reflection of how many people really have contracted the virus. Because people are not being tested, we really don't know how many people REALLY have the virus.

Go Zags!!!

I feel as though as soon as a player catches it, the entire house of cards falls and the tournament is doomed. Therefore, I see your proposal and I delete the band and cheerleaders. In exchange, we get 15 computer nerds into kennel club shirts to scream and yell for our team. Those guys have been self quarantined for years.