The Tennessee Secondary Schools Athletic Association (TSSAA) has announced it is suspending the remainder of the girls’ state tournament and next week’s boy’s tournament amid coronavirus (COVID-19) concerns.

TSSAA made the announcement following the girls’ state basketball tournament quarterfinal round last night.

The statement released by the TSSAA is as follows:

“Following the conclusion of the girls’ state basketball tournament quarterfinal round, we are suspending the remainder of the girls’ state tournament and next week’s boys’ state tournament. Whether we will be able to reschedule these events will depend on the length of the suspension and the availability of facilities.

We intended to conduct the tournaments with restricted attendance as we announced earlier. However, yesterday saw the suspension or cancellation of championship events by the NCAA and multiple collegiate conferences including the SEC tournament that was being played nearby; the suspension of regular season play in the NBA and the NHL; the closure of university campuses and of several Tennessee public school systems; and the suspension or cancellation of high school championships in multiple other states.

COVID-19 is a public health threat, a threat to our student-athletes and our school communities. With the actions being taken all around us, including the action of our host university MTSU in sending all students away from campus, we believe it would be irresponsible and contrary to the public interest for us to continue our tournaments at this time and risk contributing to the spread of the virus.

We will provide further updates as this.”

That leaves the boys state basketball high school championships and the final four of the girls state championships in limbo for now. The TSSAA Board of Directors will meet Tuesday, March 17, 2020 to discuss the future of this years basketball tournament.

The Stone Memorial Lady Panthers were scheduled to play Whitehaven this morning (Friday, March 13, 2020) in the final four. The Clarkrange Lady Buffaloes also were scheduled to play Greenfield in the final four this afternoon at 4:30 p.m.

The boys state high school basketball tournament was scheduled to start March 19, 2020. Monterey, Clay County, York Institute and Oak Ridge are teams from the coverage area playing for a shot at the state championship.