By NoontimeSports.com
It appears as if we will see some college basketball games this winter, according to a release this morning from the Patriot League.
The conference’s Council of Presidents have endorsed a plan for a league-only men’s and women’s basketball schedule with tip-off scheduled for Saturday, January 2, 2021. Yet, for the league to play games successfully this winter, each school must “conduct competition in ways that protect the health and safety of student-athletes, coaches, staffs, and their communities.”
The league’s 2020-21 schedule will see a reduction in travel and overnight stays compared to previous seasons while none of conference’s institutions will be permitted to fly to games. Teams will compete more than twice against regional foes with the Patriot League splitting the conference into three regional mini-conferences.
“We have accomplished the first step in the planning process for the 2021 Patriot League men’s and women’s basketball season,” Lafayette College President Alison Byerly, who is the chair of the Council of Presidents, said in a statement. “The Council of Presidents places the highest value and priority on League competition and we believe this model offers the best opportunities for us to conduct a safe and successful League season.”
In addition to playing more regional games, the Patriot League will allow its members to compete in non-regional contests so each team can play a 16-game schedule.
The Unites States Military Academy and the United States Naval Academy will be the only Patriot League teams allowed to play non-conference games. That decision has been approved by each academy’s Superintendent.
As of now, the league plans to sponsor an eight team postseason with both a men’s and women’s championship taking place during the second weekend of March.
Both Boston University and Holy Cross compete in the Patriot League – the Terriers men’s team placed third in the conference last winter while the Crusaders’ women’s basketball team placed fourth in the overall standings.
