Iowa Basketball Guarding Against COVID-19

All Hawkeyes Vaccinated, Boosted in Hopes of Avoiding Any Stoppage

It was easy to sell the idea of getting COVID-19 vaccination to his players, Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said.

The Hawkeyes were fully vaccinated heading into the season, and during finals week last week everyone got their booster shots.

Now, as several programs around the country are either on pause or have had games canceled because of positive COVID-19 tests, the Hawkeyes are still playing, with a home game Tuesday night against Southeastern Louisiana.

“I think the booster shots we got a week ago are a stepping stone for that,” forward Kris Murray said Monday. “We’re all doing a pretty good job of staying within our circle, not putting ourselves in a position where we can potentially be shut down.”

“They were all in, yeah,” McCaffery said on his team getting vaccinated. “Nobody questioned it. Luckily we're in a position to be able to provide it, but in a way relatively early, so they got vaccinated relatively early, and they got boostered at the appropriate time.”

McCaffery said going through last season — daily testing, no fans in the stands until the postseason, postponed games — provided some motivation.

“Think about it,” McCaffery said. “If you think about the freshman class last year, when they came in, how unique it was for them. They get to campus, there's nobody here. We were practicing, then we played the whole season without any fans until the Big Ten Tournament, so they were kind of … they didn't have a typical freshman year. They didn't go to any football games. Nobody was really going out downtown.

“So it was kind of a strange situation, but something we addressed. Not something we harp on, just be diligent, be intelligent with where you go, who you're seeing. But I think the vaccination status of our guys has really been helpful.”

The rise of new COVID-19 variants has led to increased infections within programs. Murray said avoiding any issues comes down to being diligent.

“I feel like it’s going to be something that isn’t going away for a while,” Murray said. “It’s getting kind of old, just because we don’t want to be in the same situation as last year.”

Iowa is coming off Saturday’s game in Sioux Falls against Utah State. The Hawkeyes have also played road games against Virginia and Iowa State without any issues.

“We're pretty self-contained when we travel,” McCaffery said. “We charter and we stay in a hotel, we stay together. We don't go a lot of places.”

The Hawkeyes get a break for Christmas — after Tuesday’s game, they don’t play a game until December 29 against Western Illinois.

“We've got some guys that might be going home, that are going to be going home for Christmas, so that's something that you hope that they make good decisions when they go home and who you're gathering with,” McCaffery said. “It's not like you're going to ask for a vaccination card from everybody you come in contact with.”

“With the new strain, it’s like there’s a whole lot of things going on,” said guard Joe Toussaint, who is going home to New York City for the holiday. “Be mindful of where you go, what you do. Wear a mask. Yeah, we’re vaccinated, but it doesn’t prevent you from getting it.”

McCaffery said the chance that you might have to forfeit a game in Big Ten play if a game has to be canceled because of COVID-19 is another concern.

“The other thing you're seeing this year, which is different than last year, is you're seeing forfeits,” he said. “Nobody wants to forfeit. That's an ‘L.’ Another reason why you want your guys to be really smart with what they do, where they go.”

“Guys made good decisions, I thought, last year, and they're still doing it. This go-around apparently is a little bit more aggressive, but obviously our confidence level is high because everybody has been double vaccinated, been boostered, and we're trying to be intelligent with how we live our lives and stay committed to one another. Not to say that it couldn't happen, because it certainly could, but I think we've done everything we can to increase the chances that it's not going to happen.”