The beginning to the college basketball season is hectic, with teams flying cross-country to exotic destinations for several games in tight windows. It's enough to tire out a team, both physically and mentally.
Luckily for No. 4 Duke, the Blue Devils didn't display any of that weariness Wednesday, cruising to a 93-54 win against Furman at Cameron Indoor Stadium. After playing five games in nine days to start the year, Duke finally got some rest leading up to Wednesday's tilt.
After capturing the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic title at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., Duke did not make it back to Durham until about 4:30 a.m. Sunday, head coach Mike Krzyzewski said after Wednesday's game. The Blue Devils got Sunday off and put in some running and film sessions Monday, avoiding contact drills. Tuesday's practice was also not very contact-intensive.
With such a young team and three freshman starters, it's critical for Duke to make sure it gets its rest.
"If you have veterans, you've been through it," Krzyzewski said of the preseason grind. "I think a young team is more susceptible to becoming more emotionally and mentally tired than a veteran team. So they have to find their exuberance."
Duke isn't the only team to spend late November traveling many miles for preseason tournaments. No. 5 North Carolina and No. 22 UCLA flew to the Bahamas for the Battle 4 Atlantis, and each was upset Wednesday—the Tar Heels at the hands of Butler and the Bruins by Oklahoma.
The Blue Devils remember all too well the disaster that ensued in 2011, when they traveled to Hawaii for the EA Sports Maui Invitational. Duke brought home the hardware from that event, but faced a quick turnaround in Columbus, Ohio, where the Blue Devils were crushed by Ohio State 85-63.
Krzyzewski said Wednesday that the preseason events present an unfair portrait of all the teams involved.
"All these teams that are playing all over, in Maui and Atlantis and the Barclays—it's chaotic, really," Krzyzewski said. "It's tough to get a good read about any team because nobody's going to be in that schedule once the conference starts. So it's tough to judge which team's great, which team did this. It gives you experience, but it puts you through a wringer."
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