UNC Basketball: Tar Heels game against UCLA uncertain due to COVID

The UNC basketball team is riding a five-game win streak into the end of December as the non-conference schedule will wrap up. After beating Furman on Tuesday in the Dean Dome, the Tar Heels now have the tough task of taking down No. 4 UCLA in the CBS Sports Classic on Saturday.

The two teams are currently scheduled to meet Saturday afternoon in Las Vegas but there’s an interesting development that could put that game in jeopardy.

UCLA’s game against Alabama State on Wednesday night was postponed just an hour before tipoff due to COVID-19 protocols. Bruins’ head coach Mick Cronin was scheduled to miss the game due to protocols but that was already announced prior to the game.

With the team in COVID-19 protocols, will Saturday’s matchup still take place? UCLA Athletic Director Martin Jarmond tweeted out this message saying that there is no update yet on Saturday’s game.

As for North Carolina, the Tar Heels are set to travel to Las Vegas on Thursday and per Inside Carolina, that plan remains the same:

“As of right now, we’re playing UCLA,” UNC senior associate athletic director Steve Kirschner told reporters on Thursday morning. “We’re going to practice today after this to get ready to play UCLA and go to Las Vegas with every intention of playing UCLA.”

The Tar Heels do have one more non-conference game after this one left on their schedule as they will host Appalachian State on Tuesday. From there, they host Virginia Tech before heading to Boston College and then Notre Dame in early January. Getting this game in against UCLA will help the Tar Heels especially with their win streak going right now.

For more on the UNC basketball program and this game, please check back with Keeping It Heel.