Danowski-to-Greer a Classic Combo

Lacrosse pair now on par with other great connections in Duke sports history

DURHAM, N.C. - Really, what's a goalkeeper to do?

With time about to expire on the first half of Duke's NCAA Tournament opener Saturday afternoon, Providence senior goalie Peter Littell found himself with the unenviable task of trying to derail the most dynamic duo in college lacrosse.

ACC player of the year Matt Danowski had the ball and was barreling toward him from the right flank. Explosive junior Zack Greer was positioned just a few feet away at the top of the crease. There was little help in sight.

Pick your poison? To borrow from a more familiar sport, imagine the dilemma of trying to protect the basket against a healthy Miami Heat attack, two-on-one. Will Dwyane Wade penetrate and dish to Shaquille O'Neal for a savage slam, or keep it himself and finish in your face?

Really, what's a defender to do?

In this lacrosse triangle, Littell carried the biggest stick but his hands were tied against the Duke pair's most lethal weapon: the chemistry they've developed from playing three years and 45 games together.

Danowski drove. Greer waited. All Littell could do was watch as Danowski finally whipped a pass to Greer, who flicked it into the net with six seconds left, giving the Blue Devils a 9-1 halftime lead.

“That must have happened two, three or four times,” Littell said afterward, while the Blue Devils were celebrating an 18-3 victory that propelled them into the quarterfinals May 20 at Annapolis.

Really, it only happened twice, but it seemed like more because the two were all over their half of the field during the first three quarters. Greer scored five goals and Danowski delivered seven assists before coach John Danowski pulled the plug and had his two biggest offensive stars join him on the sideline for the last 15-plus minutes of action.

The Danowski-to-Greer connection is becoming increasingly more difficult for opponents to handle as the top-seeded Blue Devils make their postseason push for an NCAA title. Danowski, a senior, moved into the national lead in assists with his precise passing against Providence. Greer, a junior, temporarily became the No. 1 goal scorer in the country, increasing his season total to 56. That's just one less than he scored as a freshman in 2005 when he led the nation. Danowski right now leads all active players in the country in career assists, and Greer is third among all active players in career goals.

Individually, the two clearly are among the best talents in Division I, but they may be at their best when they are working together. Duke is hardly a two-man team, but their two-man game is quite extraordinary ? the lacrosse equivalent of some of the school's classic passing combinations from other sports: Hart to Chesson, Bennett to Castor, Dilweg to Hines, Hurley to Laettner and Hill.

There is something special between them, and it's being accentuated at this point in the season with both at the top of their games and feeling confident in their every move.

“I think it's really simple,” John Danowski noted. “There's a word that the kids use ? these kids are players. They can just play. Players can adapt to any situation. Defensively we've seen a lot of different things and a lot of different ways to defend our team, but players just kinda figure it out. They have poise, they look around, they play with their heads up and they recognize situations.”

That was the case against Providence, as the coach credited the decision-making of his son and Greer for creating a quick tempo that often prevented the Friars from switching into a zone defense to slow the pace.

“Dealing with a tandem like that is really unique,” Littell explained. “They've got Danowski who is so even statistically with goals and assists, and they've got Greer who is so good. He's a big guy but he still finds a way to get open inside. You try to prepare, but when you don't see guys like that every day, it's really tough.

“As many times as Danowski would have the ball behind (the goal), he'd bang one up top and I'd turn around and there would be 25, Greer, right on top of me. Inside, outside, they just know where each other will be.”

In helping Duke to a 15-2 record and a 10-game winning streak, Greer has scored five or more goals seven times this spring. Most of those contests have come in the last month as the Blue Devils' offense has moved past a mid-season lull and gotten a better grasp of the style of play preferred by their first-year coach. The Devils scored 25 goals combined in their two ACC tourney wins over UNC and Virginia, then pounded Air Force for 19 before their torrent of 53 shots against Providence.

Matt Danowski has garnered the most attention as ACC player of the year, tournament MVP and finalist for the Tewaaraton Trophy ? and all of that awareness has opened up more avenues on the field for teammates such as Greer.

“When you are playing with a guy like him, he draws so much attention that I've got to be able to work around that and pick my spots,” Greer noted. “He's got so much skill that he's able to find me when I do that.

“Working over the years, it's something that's come natural to us. We've been able to play off each other. I know where he's going to be and what he's going to do before he does it, and he knows how I'm going to react to what he's doing. That's exactly what it is ? it's chemistry between us. It's been growing, and hopefully we'll keep that going.”

There was unmistakable electricity in the air for Duke's first NCAA Tournament game since the 2005 national final. Unfortunately, it presented itself in the form of lightning midway through the game, causing a two-hour interruption in play. But neither Mother Nature nor Providence could douse the electricity on the field as Duke surged forward to the quarterfinals.

Greer scored his fifth goal less than a minute after the long delay ended, and Danowski followed with three assists in less than three minutes to three different players ? Max Quinzani, Ned Crotty and Gibbs Fogarty. The score was 14-1, Danowski had broken the school's all-time assists record held by the late Tony Cullen, and the first step of Duke's march toward Memorial Day was all but complete.

One of the few downers of the day came when Danowski was decked by a Providence defender and popped off to the official as he was pulling himself off the Koskinen Stadium turf, earning a one-minute penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.

After the game, he jokingly suggested that his dad should suspend him from the next practice for the infraction. “I lost my cool, wasn't disciplined enough,” he said. “Just made a mistake.” Really, there haven't been many of those by him or his running mate on the first line of attack.

Before either matriculated to Duke, Danowski and Greer played on opposite sides of the field in the 2003 U19 World Championship. Greer guided his native Canada to the finals, and Danowski led his native USA team to the title as tourney MVP. Both were selected All-World. That honorific fits even better now.

2007 Statline               GP Shots Goals Assists Points
Matt Danowski, Sr. Attack   17 157    38      43     81
Zack Greer, Jr. Attack      17 104    56      22     78