The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:
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Milwaukee Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer says guards Eric Bledsoe and Pat Connaughton won’t play Friday against the Boston Celtics after both players arrived late to Florida because they had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
Budenholzer hasn’t announced a timeline for when either player could appear in a game. He says getting them at least a couple of five-on-five practice sessions and some three-on-three work will be important for their conditioning and developing a rhythm.
Budenholzer says it’s a big hurdle to overcome when everybody else has already put in 10 to 14 days of work.
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Season tickets will not be available for Dallas Cowboys games this season.
The Cowboys announced that due to NFL policies, government and CDC guidelines on the COVID-19 pandemic, capacity at AT&T Stadium will be limited.
The team sent season ticket holders an e-mail offering them options. They can opt in for the opportunity to purchase a limited number of tickets for a limited number of games and will have the first chance to purchase those tickets, though they could be in different locations from their normal seats.
They also could decline to buy single-game tickets for the 2020 season but ”will still retain tenure, seat location and associated benefits for the 2021 season and beyond.”
Any season ticket holders who have paid their invoice fee will have the option to apply the credit to future ticket purchases or receive a refund.
The Cowboys also said any fans who purchased single-game tickets from an official NFL licensed channel for games this season will be receiving communication from the point of purchase regarding cancellations of tickets and how to obtain a credit or refund.
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The Phillies have received the results of Wednesday’s testing, and while no players tested positive for COVID-19 two staff members did test positive.
One is a member of the coaching staff and one is a member of the home clubhouse staff.
All activity at Citizens Bank Park has been canceled until further notice.
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Rookie running back Malcolm Perry is among several Miami Dolphins players who have donated convalescent plasma after recovering from COVID-19.
The plasma helps patients still fighting the virus.
”Being able to give back to people who weren’t fortunate enough to react the same way you did to the virus and give back to the community was important,” the former Navy star said in a statement released Thursday by the team.
People who have recovered from the coronavirus have developed antibodies to the virus that remain in the plasma portion of their blood. By transfusing plasma from a person who has recovered from COVID-19 into a patient still fighting the virus, it can boost their immune system and potentially help them recover.
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There has been a spike in the number of Rutgers’ football players who have tested positive for COVID-19.
New Jersey Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said the number is now 15 and noted that even smaller gatherings can lead to positive tests.
Rutgers halted all in-person team activities and quarantined the entire program this past weekend after learning six people associated with the program had tested positive.
The Big Ten Conference member had previously reported four positive tests since returning to campus on June 15.
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Sevilla says no other players have tested positive for the coronavirus ahead of its Europa League match against Roma.
The Spanish club announced on Wednesday that Serbian player Nemanja Gudelj tested positive for COVID-19 and was isolated from the rest of the squad.
Sevilla says players and club employees were tested again and no positive results were reported.
The club says training will resume with individual sessions.
Players and employees will continue to be tested before the team’s trip to Germany for the match.
The round-of-16 game is scheduled to be played on Aug. 6. The team plans to travel on Tuesday.
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Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis is concerned about his club traveling to face Barcelona in the Champions League amid a recent spike in coronavirus cases in Spain.
De Laurentiis says ”I hear a lot of perplexity and fear coming from Spain and they’re acting like nothing is wrong. What does it take to say, `Don’t go to Barcelona but rather go to Portugal, Germany or Geneva?”’
The Barcelona-Napoli game is scheduled for Aug. 8. The first leg of the round-of-16 encounter finished 1-1 in Naples in February. The winner will advance to the quarterfinals in Lisbon, Portugal.
The Napoli president says ”if they’ve decided to play the Champions League in Portugal and the Europa League in Germany, I think we can go to Portugal or Germany for the round of 16. I don’t understand why it should stay in a city that has a really critical situation.”
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More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports
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