WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Michigan basketball team stood impatiently on its side of the court. Mike Smith jumped to touch the net. If anyone wanted to cancel the Rudy Gobert-style game, their seconds were running out. The eyes turned to a huddle of Purdue that had not yet been broken.
Nervousness?
“Definitely,” said Isaiah Livers. At first, he didn’t want to be in West Lafayette tonight. He heard the news that Purdue had a positive COVID-19 test and thought it wouldn’t be safe to play. But there he was on Friday night, speaking to a Zoom camera after scoring 22 points to lead Michigan in the 70-53 victory over the Boilermakers. The Wolverines are first in the Big Ten. Exactly what the ramifications of playing on Friday are, if any, will come into focus in the next two weeks.
Purdue coach Matt Painter said after the game that Stefanovic was symptomatic on Wednesday morning, despite the test being negative, and stayed in his room all day, returning a positive antigen test on Thursday morning . The Boilermakers played at Ohio State on Tuesday night – Stefanovic was isolated after that.
At Michigan’s request, the entire Purdue team underwent PCR tests before Friday’s game (unlike the antigen tests that the Big Ten runs daily), which was negative. Chris Forman, the team’s spokesman, tweeted before the complaint: “We feel VERY confident in our protocols.”
Special offer!
You can join UM Hoops for a discounted fee of $ 3 per month with the promotional code JOIN and unlock exclusive content. Apply today for coverage throughout the season.
Join today
Join the UM Hoops community today and access our exclusive content.
- Advanced analytics and visualizations
- Exclusive member forum and monthly ‘Ask Me Anything’
- Detailed analysis and video resources
- Ad-free viewing
Subscribe today
Already a UM Hoops member? Sign in below