Mulkey: "Wouldn’t it be a shame to keep COVID testing and then you got kids that end up having tested positive. ...and they don't get to play in the Final Four."
Baylor head coach Kim Mulkey said Monday night the NCAA should "dump" COVID-19 testing ahead of the men's and women's Final Four.
Players and coaches have received daily PCR tests during the men's and women's NCAA tournaments. Players have also been wearing SafeTag devices in order to assist in contact tracing issues. But with the final games of the 2020-21 season on the horizon, Mulkey believes these protocols should be abandoned.
"I don't think my words matter, but after the games today tomorrow, there's four teams left I think on the men's side and the women's side," Mulkey said. "They need to dump the COVID testing.”
“Wouldn’t it be a shame to keep COVID testing and then you got kids that end up having tested positive or something, and they don't get to play in the Final Four?"
"So you need to just forget the COVID tests and let the four teams that are playing in each Final Four, go battle it out”
Mulkey tested positive for COVID-19 in January. She later said the 2020-21 season will continue despite the global pandemic due to the NCAA prioritizing the "almighty dollar."
"The NCAA has to have the almighty dollar from the men’s tournament," Mulkey said. "The almighty dollar is more important than the health and welfare of me, the players or anybody else.”
Mulkey and the Bears exited the NCAA women's tournament on Monday night in a 69-67 loss to UConn. Baylor has reached the Final Four three times with Mulkey, winning the national title in 2005, 2012 and 2019.