St. Johns mascot's image sitting in empty arena resonates with fans as NCAA cancels tournaments
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}As sporting events across the globe continue to get canceled or move forward without allowing fans to attend as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, one image from an NCAA conference tournament game that was canceled midway on Thursday appeared to resonate with fans on Twitter about the reality of the virus’ impact.
Just as several conferences in the NCAA announced they would be canceling the men’s and women’s championship tournaments, the Big East had already begun its second round of games between St. Johns and Creighton at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Officials decided to call the game at halftime and cancel the tournament.
“You all can second-guess our decision to play that first half. That’s your prerogative.” Big East Commissioner Val Ackerman said in a press conference following the tournament’s cancellation, according to the New York Post. “But I can assure you we were doing the best we could with the information we had.
As an already nearly empty area became more vacant, Fox Sports cameras captured the sad image of Red Storm mascot Johnny Thunderbird sitting completely alone in the stands.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}And fans reacted.
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Even Johnny Thunderbird took to Twitter to weigh in on “March Sadness.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The game was called with St. Johns leading 38-35.