College basketball: Schedule, latest COVID-19 news for the 2020-21 season

On Thursday afternoon, it was announced that the CBS Sports Classic – a four-team, two-game event featuring North Carolina vs. Ohio State and Kentucky vs. UCLA – will be played on Saturday, Dec. 19 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland. North Carolina-Ohio State will tip off at 2 p.m. ET, followed by Kentucky-UCLA.

Fan attendance continues to be evaluated, per the news release.

On Wednesday, the Big 12 announced its men's basketball preseason poll for the 2020-21 season.

Here are the results of the poll (first-place votes in parentheses):

1. Baylor 79 (7)
2. Kansas 73 (3)
3. West Virginia 61
4. Texas 58
5. Texas Tech 53
6. Oklahoma 39
7. Oklahoma State 35
8. Iowa State 19
9. TCU 18
10. Kansas State 15

On Wednesday, Villanova released its schedule for the first nine games of the season, starting with its appearance in the 2K Empire Classic, where the Wildcats are scheduled to play Wednesday, Nov. 25 and Thursday, Nov. 26. Arizona State, Baylor and Boston College will also compete in the event.

Here are the games that Villanova announced:

• Wednesday, Nov. 25: 2K Empire Classic                                                                      
• Thursday, Nov. 26: 2K Empire Classic                                                                
• Monday, Nov. 30: vs. Saint Joseph's                                         
• Thursday, Dec. 3: vs. Temple                                                                                   
• Friday, Dec. 11: at Georgetown                                      
• Monday, Dec. 14: vs. DePaul                                                                 
• Wednesday, Dec. 16: vs. Butler                                                                   
• Saturday, Dec. 19: vs. Virginia (Madison Square Garden)
• Wednesday, Dec. 23: at Marquette

On Wednesday morning, the Big East announced its men's basketball preseason coaches poll and other preseason accolades.

Villanova was picked to win the conference, just edging Creighton, as the Wildcats received nine first-place votes and 99 point total compared to Creighton's 91. The Bluejays received the other two first-place votes.

Creighton's Marcus Zegarowski was named the preseason Player of the Year and Marquette's Dawson Garcia was named preseason Freshman of the Year.

The Preseason All-Big East First Team includes Villanova's Collin Gillespie and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Providence's David Duke, DePaul's Charlie Moore and Seton Hall's Sandro Mamukelashvili.

Kansas Athletics | Twitter

We are officially less than a month away from tip-off of the 2020-21 college basketball season on Nov. 25. Here's the latest news to know from Monday, Oct. 26.

• The Big 12 released its full conference schedules for the 2020-21 men's and women's seasons.
  • The men's schedule begins Dec. 6 with Oklahoma at TCU. Each team will play two conference games before the holiday break. 
  • The women's schedule starts Dec. 2 with Iowa State at TCU. Each team will play two conference games before the holiday break. 
  • The men's Big 12 Championship is scheduled for March 10-13 in Kansas City at the T-Mobile Center. The women's championship is set for March 11-14 in Kansas City's Municipal Auditorium.
• UAB men's basketball announced its 2020-21 schedule.
  • The Blazers will play a 27-game regular season schedule, including nine non-conference games.
  • UAB's season-opener is Nov. 25 against Alcorn State. You can see the full schedule here.
• South Dakota State topped the Summit League's men's preseason poll.
  • SDSU received 33 of 36 first-place votes to lead the conference's preseason media poll. 
  • Jackrabbits senior Douglas Wilson was voted the Preseason Player of the Year.

Ethan Miller | Getty Images

Hello. It's Sunday, Oct. 25. The 2020-21 Division I men's and women's basketball seasons begin in 31 days.

Here's what you need to know one month before opening night.

• The DI Council approved moving the start date of the 2020-21 season to Wednesday, Nov. 25.
  • Originally, it was scheduled to begin on Thursday, Nov. 10.
  • No exhibition games or scrimmages will be allowed before Nov. 25.
  • Practices opened on Wednesday, Oct. 14.
  • Andy Katz spoke with the NCAA's Dan Gavitt about the structure for this season.
• There are three scheduling options for DI men's basketball teams.
  • 24 regular-season games and up to three games in one multi-team event (MTE).
  • 25 regular-season games and up to two games in one MTE.
  • 25 regular-season games without playing in a MTE. 
  • As part of a new blanket waiver approved for MTEs, men's teams can compete in up to two MTEs as long as they do not exceed 27 regular-season games.
• There are two scheduling options for DI women's basketball teams.
  • 23 regular-season games and up to four additional games in one MTE.
  • 25 regular-season games without participating in a MTE.
• Both men's and women's teams must play a minimum of 13 games against DI opponents to be considered for NCAA championship selection.
• The NCAA Sport Science Institute updated its health and safety guidelines for the upcoming season.
• Listed below are some other dates to remember.
  • Nov. 26, 2020: Wooden Legacy tournament
  • Nov. 30, 2020: The Maui Invitational begins
  • Dec. 29, 2020: SEC and Mountain West open their respective conference schedules
  • March 14, 2021: Selection Sunday
  • March 16, 2021: NCAA tournament opens with the First Four
  • April 3, 2021: The Final Four begins at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis

On Friday, Oct. 23, the Division I Men’s Basketball Oversight Committee recommended a blanket waiver for multiple-team events, which has been NCAA staff approved. Here are a few things to note:

• Scheduling: An additional four-day scheduling window has been added to the length of MTEs.
  • Events can end up to 14 days after the first competition if a team is playing three games. 
  • Events can end up to nine days after the first competition if a team is playing two games.
• Same conference: Up to two schools from the same conference can compete in an event if they do not play.
  • Those programs can meet in the final game of an event if the event is bracketed.
• Number of events: Schools can compete in up to two MTEs during the 2020-21 season as long as they do not exceed 27 regular-season games.

Click or tap here for the full release. 

The Division I Women’s Basketball Oversight Committee is expected to consider similar waivers at its Nov. 4 meeting

On Wednesday, Oct. 21, pairings for the 2021 SEC/Big 12 Men’s Basketball Challenge were announced. This is the eighth year of the event. All 10 games this year will be played on Saturday, Jan. 30. The event ended as a tie in 2020 after the Big 12 won in 2019.

Here are the 2021 pairings:

• Auburn at Baylor  
• Iowa State at Mississippi State
• Kansas at Tennessee
• Texas A&M at Kansas State  
• Alabama at Oklahoma
• Arkansas at Oklahoma State
• TCU at Missouri
• Texas at Kentucky
• Texas Tech at LSU
• Florida at West Virginia

Game times and broadcast information will be available at a later date.

On Thursday, Oct. 14, the Bad Boy Mowers Crossover Classic released a bracket for the 2020 event. The tournament will be held from Wednesday, Nov. 25 to Friday, Nov. 27 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. This is the event's first year being played.

Here is a look at the bracket:

This is the bracket for the 2020 Bad Boy Mowers Crossover Classic.

Today, Oct. 14, marks the first day that men's and women's college basketball teams can officially start holding team practices. Players can work up to 20 hours per week and up to four hours per day, with one off day per week, leading up to opening night on Nov. 25.

• Men's preview: 7 big questions we have on the first day of practices
• Women's preview: How players are adjusting to the major changes caused by COVID-19

Some programs are providing fans inside access on Day 1 as teams return to the court. Here's how to follow live practices throughout the day:

• Vanderbilt women's basketball has its first official practice at 11:30 a.m. ET. You can join the team live on Twitter or Facebook.
• Oklahoma State men's basketball practice begins at 4:55 p.m. ET and can be streamed here at OKState.com.
• You can tune into BYU men's basketball's first practice at 8 p.m. ET on BYUtv.

NCAA.com has compiled all of the important dates for the men's basketball season in one place. Here are the dates you need to know for this season:

• Sept. 21, 2020: This date marked the start of a transition period from out-of-season activities to preseason practice. This transition period will run through Oct. 13. During this period, teams can hold strength and conditioning activities, sport-related meetings and skill instruction up to 12 hours per week, with no more than eight hours per week of skill instruction.

• Oct. 14, 2020: This is the first day of men's basketball preseason practices for the 2020-21 season, giving DI programs 42 days to hold a maximum of 30 practices. Players can work up to 20 hours per week and up to four hours per day, with one off day per week.

• Nov. 25, 2020: On Sept. 16, the NCAA Division I Council approved Nov. 25 as the start date for the first men's basketball games of the season. The original start date for the first games of the season was Nov. 10.

• Nov. 26, 2020: The Wooden Legacy begins. Teams in the field are: Georgetown, Kansas, UCLA and Virginia.

• Nov. 30, 2020: The Maui Classic begins (in Asheville, NC). The field is Alabama, Davidson, Indiana, North Carolina, Providence, Stanford, Texas and UNLV.

• March 14, 2021: The 2021 NCAA Tournament bracket will be revealed on Selection Sunday, which falls on March 14, 2021.

• March 16, 2021: The First Four will kick off, marking the first games of the 2021 NCAA Tournament.

• April 5, 2021: The 2021 national championship game will determine the men's basketball national champion.

On Oct. 12, UConn and Notre Dame women's basketball teams announced that they will not play against each other in the 2020-21 regular season. This will be the first time in seven years that the top rivalry in women's basketball will not happen. 

The game will be postponed due to the Irish needing to restructure their schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The conference rivals extended their series last year through the 2023-24 season, but has been pushed back a year. UConn will host the anticipated rivalry next season and in 2023-24. The Irish will host the games in the other two years. 

More details can be found here. 

The Division I Men’s and Women’s Basketball Oversight Committees on Monday reaffirmed their positions on reducing by four the maximum number of games that teams can play in the upcoming 2020-21 season.

• 25 regular-season games if a team does not participate in a multiple-team event
• 25 regular-season games and one multiple-team event that includes up to two games
• 24 regular-season games and one multiple-team event that includes up to three games

• 25 regular-season games if a team does not compete in a multiple-team event
• 23 regular-season games and one multiple-team event that includes up to four games

The committees, which met virtually, discussed whether a blanket waiver should be applied to permit a school to participate in a maximum of 27 games with no multiple-team events, if certain conditions were met. They have indicated they are unlikely to support such waivers.

 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association announced Thursday that its men's and women's basketball season will tip off on Nov. 18 and 19. This decision follows a Sept. 30 meeting by the MIAA CEO Council.

The Council noted concerns regarding recommendations on testing and travel as stated in the NCAA's Core Principles of Resocialization of Collegiate Basketball. However, the MIAA plans to begin the season on Oct. 15. MIAA member Northwest Missouri State finished the 2019-20 season as the No. 1 men's basketball team in the NABC Coaches Poll.
 

On Friday, the NCAA Sport Science Institute released its latest set of health and safety guidelines for the upcoming college basketball season. These guidelines are focused on testing, travel and bench area access. Here are some things you need to know:

• Under these guidelines, the recommendation for COVID-19 testing is three times per week on nonconsecutive days.
  • The recommendation is to begin this testing cycle one week before competition
    • It would apply to Tier 1 individuals, which includes student athletes and essential basketball personnel in regular proximity to student athletes.
• Travel considerations include:
  • Maximizing physical distancing and protocols that call for universal masking.
  • Alternative travel options such as chartering or a private vehicle.
  • Eating prepackaged foods and avoiding indoor restaurant dining.
  • Restricting travel party sizes
• Recommendations for access to the bench include:
  • Separating the bench from all non-Tier 1 individuals.
  • Masking and physical distancing for Tier 2 personnel who need periodic access to student athletes and other Tier 1 personnel.

Click or tap here for the NCAA's complete resocialization standards for college basketball

The SEC announced Friday start dates for its men's and women's basketball conference schedules. Here's what you need to know:

• Men's basketball conference play will begin Dec. 29-30.
  • The SEC's plan is to have 20 possible play dates for an 18-game schedule and two open dates.
  • Ten schools will use one opening in late January for the SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
    • The remaining four programs will play league games that day.
• Women's basketball will begin conference play on Dec. 31.
  • The league schedule is designed to fit 16 SEC games into 18 play dates. 

Schedules for SEC men's and women's basketball will be announced at a later date.

The Battle 4 Atlantis will resume in 2021.

On Friday, the 2020 Battle 4 Atlantis was canceled due to COVID-19. The event has been held annually since 2011 and is scheduled to return to The Bahamas for tournament's tenth anniversary in 2021.

NCAA Senior Vice President of Basketball Dan Gavitt and NCAA Vice President of Women's Basketball Lynn Holzman talked with Andy Katz on Friday, Sept. 18 about upcoming men's and women's seasons now starting on Nov. 25.

Here are some highlights from their conversations:

• Both Gavitt and Holzman said the plan remains to hold NCAA tournaments with the same field size (68 for men, 64 for women). They also said the plans include the Final Four sites of Indianapolis for the men and San Antonio for the women. 
• "As of today, we are planning and continue to plan to have our championship with the full field," Holzman said.
• Gavitt said the decision to move the start of the season to Nov. 25 came about from two big reasons: testing and the fact that about 75 percent of DI institutions will either be done with the fall semester or will have moved to online instruction and exams by that date. He also emphasized the importance of getting student-athletes physically and mentally ready for the season.
• Gavitt said the four-game minimum for nonconference games is a recommendation and not a requirement. He added that if teams play nonconference games, that will add "cross-pollination" to help the committee when it comes to making NCAA tournament selections and comparing teams, even if they're in different conferences. Even with teams playing fewer and possibly unequal numbers of nonconference games, the committee will find ways to look at teams. It's about adjustment — the best at-large teams will be selected from a variety of factors and the teams will be seeded accordingly.

You can watch the entire interviews here:

𝐍𝐂𝐀𝐀 𝐒𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 | 𝐄𝐩 𝟐𝟔
𝘉𝘢𝘴𝘬𝘦𝘵𝘣𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨

NCAA SVP for basketball Dan Gavitt & NCAA VP of women's basketball Lynn Holzman join @TheAndyKatz to discuss the DI Council's decision to start basketball Nov. 25. https://t.co/qTn1M8hjbN

— NCAA (@NCAA) September 18, 2020

On Wednesday, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference revealed its schedule model for the 2020-21 men's and women's college basketball season. This announcement comes a day after the DI Council approved a Nov. 25 start date for the season. Here's what you need to know:

• The MAAC is planning to play a 22-game league schedule this season.
  • Conference play is slated to open Tuesday, Dec. 8 for the men and Wednesday, Dec. 9 for the women.
    • Men's basketball will play league games on Tuesdays and Fridays.
    • Women's basketball will play league games on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
      • The last week in February has been left open as a COVID-19 make up.
• The first two weeks of the season are both for non-conference matchups.
  • There is also a third non-conference availability on Dec. 22-23.
• The MAAC Championships are slated to be held from March 9-13. 

On Tuesday, Sept. 16, the Division I Council approved moving the start date of the college basketball season to Wednesday, Nov 25. The new start date was approved following recommendations from the NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Basketball Oversight Committees.

According to the committees, this move was designed to begin competition "when at least three-quarters of Division I institutions will have either concluded their fall terms or moved remaining instruction and exams online creating a more controlled and less populated campus environment that may reduce the risk of COVID-19 ..."

Here are some of the schedule changes made for the 2020-21 season:

• Programs can begin preseason practice on Wednesday, Oct. 14.
  • This is a 42-day window to conduct 30 practices at most.
• Exhibitions and scrimmages before Nov. 25 will not be allowed.
• There are three scheduling options in DI men's basketball.
  • 24 regular-season games and up to three games in one multi-team event.
  • 25 regular-season games and up to two games in one multi-team event.
  • 25 regular-season games without playing in a multi-team event. 
• There are two scheduling options in DI women's basketball.
  • 23 regular-season games and up to four additional games in one multi-team event.
  • 25 regular-season games without participating in a multi-team event.
• Teams must play a minimum of 13 games against DI opponents to be considered for NCAA championship selection.
• A transition period will take place from Sept. 21 to Oct. 13 between out-of-season activity and preseason practice.
  • Teams may partake in conditioning, sport-related meetings and skill instruction for up to 12 hours a week.
    • Skill instruction may not exceed eight hours a week. Athletes must receive two days per week during this period.

“The new season start date near the Thanksgiving holiday provides the optimal opportunity to successfully launch the basketball season,” NCAA Senior Vice President of Basketball Dan Gavitt said in the release. “It is a grand compromise of sorts and a unified approach that focuses on the health and safety of student-athletes competing towards the 2021 Division I basketball championships.”

The NCAA Division I Council will meet today, Sept. 16, and the Council is expected to announce a start date for the basketball season, among other announcements. The 2020-21 season was originally scheduled to start Nov. 10, 2020, however, the start date could be pushed to later in November or December.

The DI Council meeting started at 1 p.m. ET. You can see a list of all NCAA meetings here.

NCAA Senior Vice President of Basketball Dan Gavitt has previously said the NCAA is currently not considering plans to expand the NCAA tournament field.

"We're not worried about the tournament, it's going to happen," March Madness correspondent Andy Katz has said. "You can book it."

Gonzaga coach Mark Few told Katz that he would like to see the season start sometime around Thanksgiving.

"I would just love to see it start in that window that all of us will have across college basketball, from either right around Thanksgiving or a little before or a little after," Few said.

“Outside of the NBA and NASA, it’s probably about as safe as you could hope for.”@ZagMBB’s Mark Few discusses scheduling & bubble options with Tom Izzo and @UKCoachCalipari on the #MM365 pod w/@TheAndyKatz:
🎧 https://t.co/zpcSxPxl97 pic.twitter.com/8tXC9nSN8U

— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) September 5, 2020

NCAA.com's Andy Katz held a roundtable video discussion with Purdue men's basketball coach Matt Painter, Texas coach Shaka Smart and Dayton coach Anthony Grant ahead of the Division I Council meeting on Sept. 16.

When asked when he'd like to see the season start, Painter — who is part of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Oversight Committee — mentioned the end of November, citing it as "a comfort zone when most schools are getting out."

Grant wants to fully understand the ramifications of a late November start and how it could affect his team's schedule and NCAA tournament evaluation at the end of the season. 

"Give me the rules of the race before I tell you what race I want to run," Grant said.

March Madness correspondent Andy Katz held a roundtable video conference with Kentucky men's basketball coach John Calipari, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo and Gonzaga coach Mark Few. "We're not worried about the tournament, it's going to happen," Katz said at the start. "You can book it."

When asked when he would like to see the college basketball season start, Few highlighted the week of Thanksgiving.

"I would just love to see it start in that window that all of us will have across college basketball, from either right around Thanksgiving or a little before or a little after," Few said.

"Outside of the the NBA and NASA, it's probably about as safe as you could hope for," Few said, regarding having his team on an otherwise empty campus.

“Outside of the NBA and NASA, it’s probably about as safe as you could hope for.”@ZagMBB’s Mark Few discusses scheduling & bubble options with Tom Izzo and @UKCoachCalipari on the #MM365 pod w/@TheAndyKatz:
🎧 https://t.co/zpcSxPxl97 pic.twitter.com/8tXC9nSN8U

— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) September 5, 2020

NCAA President Mark Emmert said winter and spring sports are the NCAA's highest priority after both missed out on championships in 2020 due to the coronavirus. This statement came during an announcement in which Emmert said the NCAA would not hold DI fall championships this year.

Emmert's full conversation with Andy Katz, which was published Aug. 13, is available below:

We're getting closer to the mid-September time the NCAA's Dan Gavitt told us we'd know more about when the men's and women's college basketball season will begin — and what it will look like when it does. 

Gavitt, the NCAA Senior VP of Basketball, said last month that he and NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Basketball Oversight Committees, will provide an update and recommendations on a start date for the 2020-21 college basketball season in mid-September. On Wednesday, Sept. 16, the DI Council is scheduled to meet.

"By mid-September, we will provide direction about whether the season and practice start on time or a short-term delay is necessitated by the ongoing pandemic," Gavitt said in an August statement. "We recognize that we are living and operating in an uncertain time, and it is likely that mid-September will be just the first milestone for many important decisions pertaining to the regular season and the NCAA basketball championships."

The men's college basketball season was originally scheduled to begin Nov. 10. 

On August 11, the Pac-12 Conference announced that it postponed all sports competition through the end of the calendar year. This decision will sideline the conference's men's and women's basketball programs until at least Jan. 1. According to the release, the league state that when COVID-19 conditions improve, it will consider a return to competition for affected sports after Jan. 1, 2021.

“Ultimately, our decision was guided by science and a deep commitment to the health and welfare of student-athletes. We certainly hope that the Pac-12 will be able to return to competition in the New Year," Oregon president Michael H. Schill said in the release.

Here is the 2021 men's March Madness schedule, as it stands right now. The NCAA's Dan Gavitt said last month the NCAA is considering many options on how to hold the tournament safely. So these dates can change, but there's where we stand right now:

• Selection Sunday: March 14
• First Four: March 16-17
• First Round: March 18-19
• Second Round: March 20-21
• Sweet 16: March 25-26
• Elite Eight: March 27-28
• Final Four (national semifinals): April 3, in Indianapolis
• National Championship: April 5, in Indianapolis

Here's a glance at the 2021 NCAA women's basketball tournament schedule. NCAA VP Lynn Holzman said she is confident there will be a tournament and a championship, but the committee is still looking at different options to ensure the safety of all student-athletes. 

• Selection Show: March 15 
• First Round: March 19-20
• Second Round: March 21-22
• Albany Regional: TBD
• Austin Regional: TBD
• Cincinnati Regional: TBD
• Spokane Regional: TBD
• Women's Final Four: April 2, in San Antonio 
• National Championship: April 4, in San Antonio