The North Carolina basketball program found itself in hot water earlier this week. Per Stadium’s Jeff Goodman, a video emerged showing Armando Bacot and Day’Ron Sharpe celebrating without masks after the team’s rivalry win over Duke on Saturday night.
The situation spiraled downwards from there. Monday’s game between North Carolina and Miami was postponed after the Hurricanes players expressed discomfort in playing after seeing the video.
On Tuesday, the UNC team released a joint statement, expressing regret and apologizing for the mask-less gathering.
“Saturday night, a number of players and managers – not just the ones shown on the video that was seen – got together to celebrate our win at Duke. Our intention was to celebrate privately within our group. Unfortunately, we allowed several friends who are not members of the team to join the gathering. We were inside and not wearing masks, which were mistakes. We apologize for not adhering to the University’s and athletic department’s guidelines and apologize to Coach Williams and his staff for not stepping forward when he first addressed it with us on Sunday. We have worked too hard for eight months doing the rights things to make those kinds of mistakes at this point in the season. We are hopeful we will be able to play again soon and wish to remind everyone to stay safe so this pandemic will be over as soon as possible.”
Official statement from the players. pic.twitter.com/QyanGyeQk2
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) February 9, 2021
North Carolina head coach Roy Williams also released a short statement addressing the actions of his players.
“I appreciate the players voicing their apology. They made a mistake. They’ve been fantastic for more than eight months in the way they have dealt with the whole situation with the virus. But they realize they did make a mistake, for which they are paying a very significant price.”
Official statement from Coach Williams. pic.twitter.com/041gqixLv1
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) February 9, 2021
North Carolina players certainly weren’t the only ones to make an ill-advised decision on Saturday night. Images showed hundred of fans streaming onto Franklin Street in Chapel Hill after the win over the Blue Devils, despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
As of Tuesday, the upcoming week for North Carolina remains uncertain. Williams’s squad is scheduled to play No. 9 Virginia on Saturday before hosting No. 18 Virginia Tech next Tuesday night.
However, given the circumstances, it’s possible that more postponements could be on the way.
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