Hawkeye Reporter

The University of Iowa women’s basketball game against Illinois, which was scheduled to tip off Sunday, Jan. 2, has been postponed due to COVID-19 concerns. 

The game, which was slated for 2 p.m. at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, was postponed after several individuals within the Illinois basketball program tested positive for COVID-19, according to Fan Nation. The postponement comes after the Big Ten Conference issued a news release stating it had updated its conference forfeiture policy. 

“The conference office and all 14 Big Ten member institutions have been in continuous contact about developments related to COVID-19,” Big Ten Conference Commissioner Kevin Warren said in the news release. “The well-being of our student-athletes and our entire athletic communities is our top priority and we are updating our forfeiture policy to support their health and safety as well as the integrity of conference competition.”

The decision to postpone Sunday’s game, according to Fan Nation, followed health and safety protocols already in place by the Big Ten Conference as well as medical staff from both universities. The conference officer will handle the rescheduling process, according to a release on the University of Iowa website.

When a contest is postponed due to COVID-19, it will not automatically be considered a forfeiture, according to the Big Ten conference release. Games may be rescheduled, declared a no-contest or a forfeiture. The Iowa-Illinois game is being rescheduled, according to Fan Nation, but if that can’t happen, the game will be considered a “no contest” for both schools. 

This is the second game to be postposed in as many days, according to the University of Iowa athletic department website. The Iowa-Penn State game scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 30, in Iowa City was postponed amid positive tests in the Nittany Lions team. No rescheduled date has been set for that game, according to the website.