Covid-19 contact tracing depleted the UALR men's basketball's roster Monday night and resulted -- along with foul trouble and an injury -- in the Trojans playing the final 49 seconds of their 85-77 defeat at Missouri State with four players.
Days after 14 players appeared in the University of Arkansas at Little Rock's victory over Champion Christian on Friday, testing protocols left only eight available players for Coach Darrell Walker in the Trojans' nonconference finale. Notable absentees included Jovan Stulic, Admir Besovic and Marko Lukic as UALR dropped to 4-3 on the season.
"I don't know if it was false tests or negatives; I think it was a false positive, then a negative test," Walker said. "This is the world we live in right now with covid-19."
Sun Belt Conference guidelines dictate that contact tracing programs are to operate in "conjunction with public health and campus medical providers" and must align with public health recommendations.
Per those guidelines, in-season athletes across the conference are tested at least once a week, and Sun Belt basketball programs are to be tested within 72 hours of the "first of the week's set of games."
UALR did not disclose its testing and contact tracing timeline.
"It was short notice," Walker said. "You have to get your team prepared to play the game. Every coach is dealing with that. It's not any kind of excuse. Every coach in the country is dealing with that."
UALR was dealt another blow with 5:51 remaining in the first half when transfer guard C.J. White, playing in only his second game for the Trojans, suffered a tailbone injury. White remained down on the floor for several minutes and was helped to the bench. The timetable for his return is unclear.
White's departure dropped UALR's rotation to seven, and when forward Kris Bankston fouled out in the final minute -- following Nikola Maric and Yacine Toumi who did so perivously -- the Trojans were reduced to four players.
A Bankston lay-in had drawn UALR to within four points of the Bears moments before his exit. Playing a man down, the Trojans' late comeback attempt ran out of steam.
Walker and his staff have maintained a vigilance about covid-19 protocols and the conduct of their players, encouraging them to maintain distance and to practice proper precautions. On Monday, UALR became just the latest program affected by the virus.
"You're going to have some outbreaks," Walker said. "Nobody is going to be immune and not have any covid-19 issues. It's going to happen."
The Trojans are now on Christmas break and will return Jan. 1 and 2 to open Sun Belt play with a pair of games against Texas-Arlington at the Jack Stephens Center.