The news that virtually the entire sports world was coming to a halt over concerns with the coronavirus pandemic couldn’t have come at a worse time for several teams across the state of Florida.
In the NBA, the Miami Heat enter the indefinite suspension of the current season with a 41-24 record and are just one win away from securing a playoff berth should the postseason take place – with Miami currently sitting at fourth place in the Eastern Conference.
Major League Baseball cancelled the rest of spring training and at least the start of the 2020 season – meaning the Miami Marlins will have to wait to capitalize on their 12-6 record so far, tied for the second best in all of baseball this spring.
Miami will likely see regular season series against the Philadelphia Phillies, Washington Nationals, Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Angles postponed or cancelled as a result.
Inter Miami CF saw their home opener scheduled for this Saturday postponed as part of Major League Soccer’s season suspension expected to last at least 30 days – meaning games against both the New York Red Bulls and Philadelphia Union in the coming weeks at home could be gone as well.
The Miami Dolphins have announced their staff will not be traveling in the coming weeks, ahead of pro days at colleges across the country and possibly putting next month’s NFL Draft in question.
The NHL putting their season on pause could likely mean the Florida Panthers will lose their chance at making the playoffs for the first time since 2016. The Panthers sit with 78 points entering the hiatus, just three points out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
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In college sports, the NCAA’s decision to cancel all tournaments means that the Miami Hurricanes baseball team will not get a chance to make it back to the College World Series for the first time since 2016 – while the rival Florida Gators technically end the season as the top ranked team in the country as they were in that spot entering this past week.
The Florida State Seminoles won the Atlantic Coast Conference men’s basketball tournament without breaking a sweat as their first game was cancelled Thursday and the ‘Noles won the title as they were the regular season champs.
FSU ends their season with a 26-5 record and ranked fourth nationally, their highest spot to end a season since 1972.
All college football spring practices and games are also cancelled, including the ‘Canes game scheduled for April 11th at Traz Powell Stadium and FIU’s spring game scheduled for April 3rd.
While the Miami Open tennis tournament scheduled to start March 23rd has been cancelled and will not be made up, NASCAR’s race on March 22nd at Homestead Miami Speedway was scheduled to take place without fans before it was decided on Friday to be postponed.
