Krzyzewski questions ACC scheduling

DURHAM - Add Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski to the voices questioning the ACC basketball schedule this season.

The imbalance in teams' schedules puzzles Krzyzewski. Duke played Clemson twice in its first six ACC games and will play Maryland twice in 18 days later on.

Georgia Tech and Florida State had met twice by Jan. 24.

"There are a number of teams in our league that we haven't played yet, but this is our 10th game," Krzyzewski said. "There should be more balance, because teams change positively from January to February. So everybody in the league - and I'm not saying it benefits us or doesn't benefit us - but overall you have more equity involved if you play a team in January and you play a team in February."

N.C. State coach Sidney Lowe also has said he would prefer to play at least eight ACC games before facing any opponent for a second time.

ACC associate commissioner Karl Hicks, who creates the schedule, told the Raleigh News & Observer last week that he prioritizes the scheduling concerns coaches have communicated to him in the past while trying to get all of the league's TV partners premier games.

That means minimizing instances when teams play twice in three days; trying to balance 9 p.m. tipoffs among the teams in the league; and balancing Sunday night games among all teams. Hicks has a rule where he won't schedule two ACC teams to play each other twice in a two-week period.

Beyond that, there's nothing preventing teams from playing twice in a three-week period. Krzyzewski doesn't like the current format.

"How we've done it this year, I just think it's not very good, for everybody," he said. "To play in a condensed manner is not an equitable way of doing the league."

Ken Tysiac