U of L coach bullish on hoops. ‘I’m confident that we’ll have some type of season.’
While there’s plenty of uncertainty about what exactly athletic competition will look like this fall amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, University of Louisville men’s basketball coach Chris Mack is convinced college hoops will be played in some form or fashion.
“I’d be lying if I (said) I wasn’t concerned. But if I were a betting man — and that’s illegal in the NCAA’s eyes, so I’m not — I would tell you that we’re going to have some type of season,” Mack said during a media teleconference Thursday.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease Director Dr. Anthony Fauci has expressed optimism that a vaccine for COVID-19 will be developed sometime in the near future. Mack speculated about how that could affect attendance at college basketball games this season.
“Dr. Fauci is talking about a vaccine being available in November or December or January, which leads me to believe we may not have fans at the beginning of the year,” Mack said. “There’s a lot of different scenarios that we’re talking about as an ACC coaching staff in our weekly meetings trying to just generate as many contingency plans as we possibly can. So while a lot of talk and a lot of eyes are on the sport of college football, there are a lot of good people behind the scenes that are trying to figure out what men’s basketball can look like ... I’m confident that we’ll have some type of season.”
This week, Mack and his coaching staff were allowed to meet with and instruct the Cardinals in person for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic began. Per NCAA rules, coaches can now spend up to eight hours per week with their teams.
Players were allowed to return to campus and begin voluntary workouts on June 1. The Cardinals’ schedule hit a roadblock when two players tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this month, prompting a suspension of all team activities for two weeks.
Mack said both players, whose names the university declined to release, have fully recovered; one was asymptomatic and the other recovered from mild symptoms over the course of a weekend.
The two-week quarantine period ended Monday, and Mack said the team is now busy training for fall basketball. While circumstances have certainly put the Cardinals behind schedule when it comes to training for the season, Mack said it’s all relative.
“If you’re comparing it year-to-year we’re way behind,” Mack said. “But we get measured versus our counterparts. They’re all in the same boat, unless they’re doing some illegal things.”
Resilient youth
Mack said his players have done a remarkable job rolling with the punches during a most unusual time, especially the incoming freshmen who had their final high school season cut short.
“They’re more resilient than I think we as older adults give them credit,” Mack said. “I’m watching my daughters, who are younger than them, go through the same thing of losing seasons, losing competition, losing awards banquets, you name it.
“But we’re dealing with that all around the country and these guys are very resilient. The three freshmen that we have ... they’re excited to be here and get acclimated to a new place and to new people. And they’re doing as well as they possibly can.”
Mack said it was crucial for the mental health of his players that they begin working together to prepare for the season. He told U of L vice president and athletic director Vince Tyra that it was important the team return to campus.
“I was very adamant with Vince that we have to get our players here to campus as soon as we possibly can, regardless of whether the coaches were allowed to instruct on the floor or not,” Mack said. “I’d rather have these guys around each other so they’re in good spirits, and obviously do it in as safe a manner as we possibly could.”
High hopes
Mack was clearly excited about Major League Baseball getting underway on Thursday. The Cleveland native and former Xavier head coach is a noted fan of the Cincinnati Reds, and he expressed hope that during this most unusual 60-game season the script will turn out differently than usual for the seemingly perpetually star-crossed team from Southern Ohio.
“I just hope we’re not 15 or 20 games out of first place by the time we’re in game 45,” Mack said. “A shortened season should help the Reds, I sure hope it does. Put me down for 33 wins, 33 and 27.”
Hairy Calipari
Mack’s cross-state rival, University of Kentucky Coach John Calipari, has been spotted sporting an unusual amount of facial hair during quarantine. Invited to rate Cal’s new beard, Mack mostly avoided the bait.
“I won’t talk about Coach Calipari,” Mack said. “I would tell you that first of all, I probably couldn’t grow one ... I don’t know if I’ve gone through puberty yet.
“I would never even try to grow a mustache, a goatee ... I shave and come to work every day, even during the pandemic.”
