The KHSAA Board of Control voted Wednesday to delay the start of the basketball season, along with the other winter sports, to Jan. 4.
This comes after a couple of weeks of speculation after the start of the KHSAA State Football Playoffs were moved back a week and will start on Friday.
The BOC met with a work session at 8 a.m. CST with the regular meeting not starting until close to 1:30 p.m.
During the work session, the BOC discussed the possibilities for basketball and the rest of the winter sports at length.
KHSAA Commissioner Julian Tackett recommended to the board to not start until January.
“I really can’t in clear conscience think to tell you I think it’s a good idea for our member schools to start playing organized games, official games, this coming Monday,” he said. “I know they’ll be parents upset. That’s okay. I know they’ll be coaches upset. I know they’ll be kids upset.”
While nothing is concrete, the district tournaments are scheduled to start March 1 with region tournaments starting March 8. The KHSAA Girls’ Sweet Sixteen is scheduled for March 17-21 while the KHSAA Boys’ Sweet Sixteen is scheduled for March 24-28.
Tackett said he knows the state’s superintendents have a tough job to do.
With last year’s KHSAA Sweet Sixteen being canceled, Tackett said it was a point of emphasis for the BOC to come to the best decision that could lead to a postseason tournament.
“The real advantage to pushing back is meeting one of your objectives, which is to have a full season with a culminating event,” he said.
Basketball isn’t the only sport pushed back as wrestling and swimming were also pushed to the beginning of the year but Tackett said he knows what most people in the state are focused on.
“Basketball is the lifeblood of our state,” he said.
