The Fatigue Factor

The Washington Post has a good piece today about how grueling the Hoyas' schedule is. The basic gist of the article is that it is hard to play two games in three days, and that doing that a lot is a real concern for coaches. It notes JTIII's belief that it was a factor in the loss to Villanova and that it compelled his decision to sit our key players in the Rutgers win.

"I wanted to see, once we got the lead, if we could get those guys a rest," Thompson said of his three leading scorers. "The one-day turnaround definitely hurt us the last time."

Indeed, Georgetown lost at home to Villanova on Jan. 8, just two days after handily beating then-No. 17 Notre Dame. Thompson later said that fatigue was a factor in the 56-52 loss to the Wildcats. But it is something the Hoyas will have to handle; they face more of these quick turnarounds than any other team in the Big East. On four occasions, they will play two games in three days -- something that Thompson was quick to notice when the league schedule was released.

This tidbit about GU having the most one-day turnarounds in the Big East is both interesting and troubling. Hopefully JTIII can figure away to avoid the problems associated with those short turn arounds.