Another week, another game-sealing second half run for the Blue Devils.
No. 4 Duke and Georgetown were locked in a back-and-forth contest for most of Saturday's game at Multi-Sport Field in Washington, with neither team leading by more than two goals until the decisive fourth quarter, when the Blue Devils’ offense took over en route to a 15-13 win.
“Georgetown really pops on film,” Duke head coach John Danowski told GoDuke.com. “They’re very impressive, they’re well-coached. They had great spacing on offense and they play fast. We knew it was going to be a 60-minute battle. We’re a good team, we’re not great by any stretch and we knew this would be two good teams playing on a Saturday afternoon.”
Junior midfielder Myles Jones had another spectacular day for the Blue Devils (7-1), notching a hat trick and five assists, with all but one helper coming in the second half. Sophomore attackman Jack Bruckner added four first-half goals on an efficient five shots. Faceoff specialist Jack Rowe kept the Hoya defense on its toes as he won 21-of-29 faceoffs and defender Will Haus scooped up six ground balls to help contribute to Duke goals within a minute of each quarter’s start.
After a quick goal from Bruckner less than a minute into the game, an illegal body check from Duke defender Brian Dunne gave Georgetown (4-3) a man-up situation. Midfielder Peter Conley quickly capitalized to tie the game 1-1. Several possessions later, Conley and Reilly O’Connor—the Hoyas' leading offensive threats—tacked on two more scores to give the home team a 3-1 lead. But as the first period came to a close, Duke scored two goals in 16 seconds with less than a minute remaining to even the score behind the play of Rowe in the faceoff X.
Picking up from they left on at the end of first quarter, the Blue Devils struck quickly in the second frame as Bruckner added his second goal of the day just nine seconds into the period. Both teams traded goals and kept it tight as Bruckner capped off an early hat trick to put the Blue Devils up by a score heading into the locker room.
The theme of the third quarter was efficiency.
Although both goalies were under fire often in the first half—Duke launched 27 shots to the Hoyas’ 21—neither team found the back of the net much. The Blue Devils’ Luke Aaron came up with eight first half saves and Georgetown's Nick Marrocco had nine as both teams combined to shoot just 9-for-48, misfiring on shot after shot.
“I thought offensively we were a little timid,” Danowski said. “I thought offensively we were a little careless with the ball, which led to some run-outs by them. They did a great job of keeping our offensive middies on the field so you have to give Georgetown a world of credit. Sixty minutes you just have to keep playing and that’s one of the things our guys are learning.”
After the halftime break, both teams cleaned up their sloppy play. Bruckner followed up his torrid first half with another speedy goal for Duke—putting the Blue Devils ahead 6-4—off of a Jones assist just 17 seconds into the period. Duke connected on 4-of-7 shots but Georgetown took the lead 10-9 as the Hoyas beat Aaron on six of their 10 attempts in the period.
The Blue Devils headed into the fourth quarter facing a one-goal deficit but quickly turned it into a comfortable three-goal cushion. Rowe’s equalizer 12 seconds into the fourth made it the third straight quarter in which Duke scored within the first 20 seconds. The senior’s quick score set the tone for an explosive 15 minutes for the Blue Devil offense as they ripped off 15 shots and scored on six. Three of those scores came from Jones, helping to put a dagger in Georgetown’s late chances. The 6-foot-4, 240-pound junior's eight points on the day keyed the victory as Jones continues to make his case as one of the nation’s best midfielders.
Senior attackman and captain Justin George made his first career start in place of injured starter Case Matheis and made the most of the opportunity, scoring his second goal of the season on four shots.
Duke opens ACC play March 22 at the Carrier Dome against No. 1 Syracuse.
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