Dec. 10 basketball games at Blair postponed due to COVID-19 outbreak at Paint Branch

Mens' varsity basketball game canceled due to COVID

Photo: Blair mens' varsity basketball game canceled due to COVID outbreak at Paint Branch HS.

Blair mens' varsity basketball game canceled due to COVID outbreak at Paint Branch HS. Photo courtesy of Derek Mu and Mollie Block.

Two Friday night basketball games at Blair against Paint Branch High School were postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak in Paint Branch’s boys basketball program. The Blazer boys junior varsity (0-1) and varsity (0-1) teams' basketball games, scheduled for 5:30 p.m. and 7:15 p.m., respectively, at Blair were postponed to a later date.

Blair Athletics Director Rita Boulé communicated with the Paint Branch’s athletic director about the COVID scare in their athletics department. "My understanding is that they've had…enough [cases] in the boys basketball program, and, I believe wrestling, that they have closed down those teams," Boulé said. 

The boys’ junior varsity basketball game was postponed on Dec. 9 and Blair's players were informed during practice. 

The postponement of the boys’ varsity basketball game was announced in an email sent to the Blair community 45 minutes before tip-off. "Based on guidance from the Maryland Department of Health, late this afternoon the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services asked MCPS to postpone activities with Varsity boys’ basketball team of Paint Branch High School. As a result, Montgomery Blair’s High School Varsity boys’ basketball game scheduled for this evening against Paint Branch HS has been postponed," the statement said.

The postponement was also announced on Instagram and Twitter.

A wrestling tournament that Blair was slated to participate in was also canceled Friday afternoon due to a COVID outbreak at the hosting school, Oakland Mills High School.

The girls' varsity (2-0) and junior varsity basketball games at Paint Branch happened as scheduled. Blair's junior varsity won 33-30, while varsity blew away the hosts 73-46.

The junior varsity and varsity boys lost their season openers on Tuesday against Seneca Valley High School. The varsity boys lost 59-58 in a tightly contested game that went down to the wire.

Blair's next home game is December 17 at 7:15 PM versus Walter Johnson.