Week Off / Scheduling

[gofurman]

Does Duke ever take a full week off - ala UNC , Clemson, etc.. I really think this is smart of some of the other ACC teams and something Duke should consider (esp considering late season fatigue/fades of late)...

Skip the durn St Johns game (I know it is scheduled into the future) and take a week off.

We see how we came out after the December break of 17 days...reeled off double digit wins before losing focus for a week...

thoughts?

[CameronBornAndBred]

I'm not a fan of that idea. I think it's important to keep up the momentum, win or lose, of the regular season. It's keeps the pace up going into the tourneys where you must play at least 2 games in 4 days, and for the ACC's sometimes more. They do have the week before tourney play to rest, and then as they progress in March, a week off before the next site. I'm not sure how much of that time is spent traveling, if we are lucky it won't be much for the first 2 weekends this year. I'd like to see what the players' opinion is.
Besides that, I'm greedy and hate to wait a week until I get to see the next game. That stretch during the exam break drives me nuts as a fan. We get a taste, then it's withheld from us. Drug dealers do that to their clients, you know. It's almost criminal.

[dukegirlinsc]

Does Duke ever take a full week off - ala UNC , Clemson, etc.. I really think this is smart of some of the other ACC teams and something Duke should consider (esp considering late season fatigue/fades of late)...

Skip the durn St Johns game (I know it is scheduled into the future) and take a week off.

We see how we came out after the December break of 17 days...reeled off double digit wins before losing focus for a week...

thoughts?

Duke took a munch longer break than UNC and Clemson during the holidays. It was quite lengthy this year, even more so than normal. (Or it felt like it anyways.)

[gofurman]

Duke took a munch longer break than UNC and Clemson during the holidays. It was quite lengthy this year, even more so than normal. (Or it felt like it anyways.)

You are correct (see my original post). This break seemed to be a good thing. This is why I wish we would take a one week break during conference (Feb) - that would allow for a day or two off and some short practices

[dukegirlinsc]

You are correct (see my original post). This break seemed to be a good thing. This is why I wish we would take a one week break during conference (Feb) - that would allow for a day or two off and some short practices

I agree to an extent. I'm not a fan of the huge breaks during the holidays. (Actually I'm not a huge fan of long breaks, period.) Especially during the end of ACC play. It can be nice to take a break during ACC play, just for the rest of injured players...but it can also ruin a rhythm, which is about the last thing this team needs right now. I dunno, it's a win-lose situation, IMO.

[TwoDukeTattoos]

Duke took a munch longer break than UNC and Clemson during the holidays. It was quite lengthy this year, even more so than normal. (Or it felt like it anyways.)

Yeah, that break drove me nuts and Duke was certainly rusty when they returned. And UNC won three games during that stretch which drove me even nuttier!

In response to the original question, a week off can certainly be beneficial for obvious reasons - rest and injury repair. However, I am more a fan of scheduling an out-of-conference opponent. It keeps the players fresh by stepping out of the ACC, while also keeping them sharp. Also, every other year the game is played on the road; playing in a strange arena can be a good primer for March. I do wish, however, that Duke would revamp their regular out-of conference foes. Michigan was great in the 90s and perhaps early 00s, but not since. And St Johns is of course not a great opponent anymore. Duke used to play UCLA each year (while they had Lavin) but we kicked their butt each year and UCLA eventually pulled out.

[EarlJam]

I'm not a fan of that idea. I think it's important to keep up the momentum, win or lose, of the regular season. It's keeps the pace up going into the tourneys where you must play at least 2 games in 4 days, and for the ACC's sometimes more. They do have the week before tourney play to rest, and then as they progress in March, a week off before the next site. I'm not sure how much of that time is spent traveling, if we are lucky it won't be much for the first 2 weekends this year. I'd like to see what the players' opinion is.
Besides that, I'm greedy and hate to wait a week until I get to see the next game. That stretch during the exam break drives me nuts as a fan. We get a taste, then it's withheld from us. Drug dealers do that to their clients, you know. It's almost criminal.

An anagram for your board name is:

Me no brand cornbread.

-EarlJam

[CameronBornAndBred]

An anagram for your board name is:

Me no brand cornbread.

-EarlJam

I'm never going to login without thinking of food now.