PORTLAND, Ore. – The Great Northwest Athletic Conference announced Friday that it plans to move forward with modified conference-only men's and women's basketball schedules beginning in January.
 
Four teams – Alaska Fairbanks, Northwest Nazarene, Saint Martin's and Seattle Pacific – have indicated that they will participate in the 2021 season. Six institutions have decided that they will not participate in the conference basketball season for reasons related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Institutions not competing in the GNAC season are Alaska Anchorage, Central Washington, Montana State Billings, Simon Fraser, Western Oregon and Western Washington.

 

"I am grateful for the support of the Seattle Pacific administration which had paved the way for us to opt into the 2021 basketball season," said Athletic Director Jackson Stava. "We believe that SPU has a testing protocol and other safety measures that can allow us to compete in a controlled and safe environment. Most importantly, I am excited for our student-athletes and coaches who have been working diligently since last March, hoping for this opportunity.
 
"We are all very cognizant of the changing impact of COVID-19 and did not overlook the health and safety of our students, campus or community in making this decision," Stava added. "Along with the other institutions who declared their intention to play this season, we will be constantly monitoring both national and local coronavirus trends as we move toward January. Should any development compromise our ability to play these games in a safe and responsible manner, this decision will be revisited."
 
The GNAC basketball schedules are being revised to minimize travel and emphasize the health and safety of student-athletes, coaches and staff. Teams will play games on consecutive days against the same opponent in the same location, with games played on Fridays and Saturdays. The men's and women's schedules will mirror each other, with two competing schools playing each other on the same dates at opposite locations.
 
Teams will comply with NCAA, state and local health protocols, including weekly COVID testing, mask-wearing by participants not actively on the court and isolation and quarantine in the event of positive tests or exposure. Additionally, the conference agreed that all competitions will be played without spectators.
 
The modified conference-only schedules are expected to be finalized in the next two weeks. Games will begin no earlier than Jan. 7.
 
Teams not participating in the GNAC season will be allowed institutional autonomy to conduct countable athletically-related activities within NCAA regulations. Those teams will be allowed to seek non-conference competition within applicable health guidelines, including games against other GNAC institutions that will not compete in the conference season. Those competitions may not begin before Jan. 7.
 
Decisions affirming the modified conference basketball season were approved by the conference's CEO Board.
 
"The GNAC's reformatted schedule has been designed to reduce travel, promote health and safety, and foster conditions that enable student-athletes to return to intercollegiate competition safely," said GNAC commissioner Dave Haglund. "We support each conference member and the decisions that have been made regarding the upcoming basketball season. As it has done since the onset of the pandemic, the GNAC leadership will continue to evaluate and monitor conditions related to the coronavirus and make decisions as warranted."
 
The Seattle Pacific men's basketball team registered a 22-7 record and captured the 2020 GNAC regular-season championship with an 18-2 league ledger. The Falcons qualified for the NCAA Division II Tournament as the West Region's No. 5 seed, but the playoffs were cancelled due to the pandemic on March 12, one day before the first-round games were schedule to begin.
 
The SPU women wound up the 2019-20 season with an 8-20 overall record and placed eighth in the GNAC standings with a 6-14 mark. They return honorable mention all-conference forward Ashlynn Burgess, who topped the team in both scoring (11.3 ppg) and rebounds (5.9 rpg) last season.
 
The GNAC Management Council and CEO Board continue to look at the feasibility of the spring seasons for baseball, softball, outdoor track and field, men's and women's golf and women's rowing; and the suspended fall seasons for cross country, men's and women's soccer and volleyball.