Gonzaga vs Washington basketball game canceled due to COVID-19 protocols

The Gonzaga vs Washington basketball game scheduled for Sunday has been canceled due to COVID-19 protocols within the Huskies program, according to a press release published Thursday. The two in-state rivals also announced plans to work toward a new date for the game in Spokane next year.

In June 2019, Gonzaga and Washington agreed to extend their rivalry with a four-year deal which runs until the 2023-24 season. The series began in 1910 and has swung back and forth over the years, with Gonzaga winning 13 of the last 14 and six in a row entering this season.

In 2020, both teams mutually agreed not to play the rivalry due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The three-year gap between potential meetings will mark a gap in the series historic which details how much the virus has changed sports.

The Washington program has experienced problems with COVID-19 over the past week, starting with a rescheduled conference game against Arizona which has been rescheduled for Jan. 25, 2022. The school then forfeited its game against UCLA, marking the first instance of forfeit this season.

Gonzaga started the season 7-2 with a pair of top 25 wins while Washington fell to 4-4 after the COVID-19 forfeit and a pair of mid-major losses to end November. Washington’s next opportunity to play would be Dec. 18 against Seattle University. Gonzaga’s next game comes on the same date against Texas Tech.

Mike Hopkins on COVID-19

On Wednesday, Washington basketball coach Mike Hopkins told reporters that the team remains unable to practice due to positive tests and assured fans that no one is experiencing serious illness at this time.

“We’re thankful and grateful and thank the Lord upstairs that we’re all able to get through this at least healthy,” Hopkins said, via the Seattle Times. “That’s really the biggest thing. Thank the Lord.”

He continued: “For the kids, it’s disappointing,” Hopkins said. “You practice hard to get opportunities like this to play such an incredible schedule against great teams. But on the flip side, the COVID thing is real. … You get a really good perspective when stuff like this happens. For us it was obviously disappointing for the games, but we were just lucky that the people who do have COVID, that they’re OK. That was the first concern. A really tough time, but the kids are pretty resilient, have been really positive and hopefully get a chance to play at some point.”