UConn Huskies' Geno Auriemma tests positive for COVID-19 ahead of NCAA women's basketball tournament
UConn women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday, the university said.
He is not experiencing any symptoms, per's the school's release Monday, and is isolating at home.
The women's NCAA tournament bracket was announced Monday night. Top-ranked UConn earned one of four No. 1 seeds and will play High Point on Sunday, when opening-round games tip off.
UConn said contact-tracing protocols showed Auriemma did not have close contact with any other team member since Friday, and other Tier I personnel have tested negative for COVID-19 since NCAA tournament testing began March 9. Auriemma turns 67 on March 23.
The Huskies are scheduled to leave for San Antonio on Tuesday morning. According to CDC and Connecticut Department of Public Health guidelines, Auriemma will remain in isolation for 10 days and can rejoin the team on March 24 -- meaning he will also miss the Huskies' second-round game on March 23 if they advance past No. 16 High Point.
In its statement, UConn didn't specify who would fill in for Auriemma for the beginning of the NCAA tournament. Associate head coach Chris Dailey has served as head coach in past situations in which Auriemma wasn't able to coach due to illness. She has been with him at UConn since they came to the program in 1985.
"After we received notification of the positive test result yesterday, we initiated contact tracing protocols, which included interviewing individual members of the basketball program and in-depth video analysis of practice," director of sports medicine and head team physician Deena Casiero said in the statement. "Only household close contacts were identified. Given the fact that we have been doing daily testing for the past seven days, we feel confident that we were able to catch this very early on in the disease process.
"The remainder of Tier I tested negative yesterday and today."
According to the school, Auriemma received a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday. According to CDC guidelines, he remains nine days shy of becoming fully vaccinated.
"I'm feeling well but disappointed that I will be away from the team for the next several days," Auriemma said in the statement. "Fortunately, I have a great coaching staff who will lead us during my absence.
"This revelation is a reminder that, while there is a light at the end of the tunnel, we are not on the other side of this pandemic yet. The full effect of vaccines does not occur until 14 days after our last vaccine dose, and for those of us getting two-dose vaccine, that means we're not in the clear after just one dose. My team and I need to remain vigilant in the areas of mask-wearing and social distancing as we continue this fight against COVID."
The Huskies (24-1) won the Big East regular-season and tournament championships.
