DePaul pauses all men's basketball activities

The DePaul men's basketball program will halt all team activities following positive COVID-19 test results among its Tier 1 group. Due to this hiatus, the first three games of the 2020-'21 season scheduled Nov. 25, 28 and Dec. 1 are canceled.

"We have been able to sustain a level of productivity while facing the COVID-19 pandemic during the preseason, but unfortunately as positive cases have been increasing all around us, we now have to deal with it directly in our program," coach Dave Leitao said in a statement.

"We are disappointed the men's basketball program will be unable to start the season as planned after all the hard work our student-athletes, coaches, and staff have put into preparing for these games, Director of Athletics DeWayne Peevy said. "Flexibility and patience will continue to be paramount this season as we navigate these unique times."

"The attentiveness and understanding of the situation by our players and staff have been a priority since we all returned to campus this summer," Leitao said. "We'll get through this together. We'll return to the practice floor and competition after we complete all mandated protocols and procedures."

The university is not identifying any of the affected student-athletes or staff.