Purdue women’s basketball team, 2 others withdraw from Vegas tournament

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Dayton, Purdue and Texas A&M women’s basketball teams have withdrawn from a Las Vegas tournament.

Their departures are part of the continuing fallout from a similar event at a Strip resort over Thanksgiving weekend where safety concerns were raised by some, including Indiana University women’s basketball coach Teri Moren.

Las Vegas Holiday Hoops Classic operations manager Bret Seymour said the three schools had agreed to be additions to his tournament in coordination with officials from Destination Basketball.

Destination Basketball ran the Las Vegas Invitational last month at The Mirage which experienced multiple issues, including not having medical personnel on-site.

Auburn freshman Kharyssa Richardson lay on the court for 50 minutes after falling hard and appearing to hit her head before EMTs arrived.

Purdue will keep its matchup with Texas A&M on the schedule. The Boilermakers will travel to College Station on Dec. 21 for a 2 p.m. tipoff against the Aggies, the school’s athletics department said in a statement. The previously scheduled game against Campbell will not be played.

“We’re all about giving our players the opportunity to play the game they love,” said Texas A&M coach Joni Taylor in a statement. “Given the circumstances of the Las Vegas Invitational, we have made the decision to withdraw from the tournament. We are very grateful to Purdue for being adaptable and allowing us to host them instead.”