No Fans Allowed For Big West Tourney Games In Anaheim, Long Beach
ANAHEIM (CBSLA) – No spectators will be allowed to attend Big West Tournament basketball games in Anaheim and Long Beach this week, the latest measure being taken to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
The Big West Tournament announced Tuesday that all games will be closed to fans.
The tournament, which began Tuesday and runs through Saturday, is being played at the Honda Center in Anaheim and at the Walter Pyramid on the campus of Long Beach State University.
All the games will be broadcast on the ESPN network. The men's and women's championship games will be held Saturday.
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"The Big West Board of Directors…strongly feel that this is a prudent way to help slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus while being sensitive to our student-athletes who have pointed towards playing in the tournament all season," said Big West Commissioner Dennis Farrell in a statement Tuesday.
This comes as multiple California universities have taken the measure of canceling in-person classes and switching to online classes for the foreseeable future. They include the likes of USC, UCLA, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, Stanford University, UC Berkeley and San Jose State University.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, COVID-19 is spread from person-to-person through close contact, usually within 6 feet, and mainly via respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs or sneezes.
Symptoms include fever, cough and shortness of breath. People are likely most contagious when they are most symptomatic. Coronavirus can also be spread by touching contaminated surfaces and then touching your mouth, nose and eyes.
The Big West Conference includes UC Irvine, Cal Poly, Cal State Fullerton, University of Hawaii, UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis, Cal State Long Beach and Cal State Northridge.
