Syracuse EMO gaol 8:45 left in first quarter…Su 3 Duke 0…

Syracuse scores again…Luke Cometti from Rice…Su4 Duke 0

Lamolinara for Cuse is making Big saves

Matt Harris  Syracsue blocks a shot in the head..still plays on…

End of first…Cuse 4 Duke 0

…….

Lamolinara comes out in the second, grabs the all and starts a break that leads to a SU goal with 14:18 left in the second…Cuse 5 Duke 0…

Duke scores first goal from Wolf with 12:54 left…Duke 1 SU 5

Beautiful off ball movement by Syracuse…SU gets another from Loy with 11:47 left.  Su 6 Duke 1

Duke goal by Tripuka…Dive which is illegal into the crease…There was clearly no push, but it gets Duke its second goal…6-2 Cuse

Off ensuing FO, Duke wins it and then Miles Jones scores for Duke bringing the Blue Devils within three with 10:29 left in the second…

8 :42 left Jo Jo makes some great moves but forces inside for a turnover instead of a shot…

Duke with a nice inside shot.  Josh Dionne from Wolf with 7:27 left in the 2nd…

Even though Duke wins FO, SU pressure takes it back with 7 minutes left in 1st…

JoJo tries to force a pass to a teammate…Gets triple teamed and Duke gains possession….

Syracuse has alot of dropped passes…

Wolf scores up high on Lamolinara…SU6 Duke5…

Su holds off a late rally by Duke in the second but Ianzito might have rehurt his ankle and needs help off

Start second half…
Lawson scores tying it up…6-6 all

Megill draws penalty on Dionne and plays hard to keep the ball in play…

Lamolinara’s aggressive play pays off again as SU takes the ball from Duke 7:25 remaining in the 3rd

Hamlinn sticks a nice stick and disrupts pass… MeGill passes up to Ianzito SU ball…

Quickly followed up by goal from Donahue (3rd of game)…Su 7 Duke 6 with 4 minutes left

Lawson scores for Duke…Ties it back up at 7 all

Duke wins face off…Quick goal from Offitt with 2:01 left…Duke’s first lead of the game

Duke off EMO goes up 9-7 with 1:10 left in the third…

Duke scores again with 23 seconds left…Duke 10 - SU 7

End of third quarter Duke 10 SU 7

Duke number 8 scores third goal of day assisted by 7 Jake Tripucka…Duke 11-SU7

Duke goal by 19 Christian Walsh at 12:29 assisted by 25 Josh Offit……….Duke 12-SU7

Duke goal 7 Jake Tripucka second of the game at 10:47…unassisted goal….Duke13-SU7

SU unassisted goal by 22 Jo Jo Marasco at 8:11…..Duke 13-SU8

SU  unassisted goal by Jo Jo Marasco at 7:36……….Duke 13-SU9

SU penalty 31 David Hamlin one minute slash at 4:15.

Duke goal 31 Jordan Wolf third of the day assisted by 25 Josh Offit at 11:53….Duke 14-Su 9

Duke unassisted goal by 31 Jordan Wolf at 1:55……Duke 15-SU9

With under 2 minutes left, Duke and Syracuse score inconsequential goals…16 Duke, Cuse 10

Duke wins 16-10…Only their second title in seven tries…Congrats to Duke for the win.
Congrats to Cuse for a great season as well…if only the Orange had a FO guy this game could have had a different outcome

Their offense is clicking, and their face off unit is winning everything.

Syracuse comes into this game with the number one seed yet with a team everyone overlooked in the preseason.  Syracuse is a team that may not win pretty, but a win in the W column is all that is needed.

Duke crumbled in the fourth quarter against a Cornell team led by Rob Pannell, although Duke had built up a large enough lead in the 3 quarters previous 14-7 only to end the game clinging to a 16-14 win.  Duke even won more Face Offs and more Ground Balls in the fourth and still almost gave up the game.

Duke surprisingly gave up the ball with 18 turnovers in the game against Cornell versus only 8 for Cornell.

The big factor of this game was not anyone or anything for Duke, but AJ Fiore’s poor performance letting in 16 goals with 10 saves.

Duke’s saving grace was their special teams.  An Extra Man Offense that only scored 2 of 10 opportunities went 3 of 6 against a Cornell team that prided itself and talked about the importance of special teams.

Syracuse is 16-3.  Their last two wins have seen Syracuse has been losing 12-8 through three quarters, only to kick it up and outscore opponents 8-2 in the fourth quarter.  Yes they make mistakes.  Yes they play sloppy at times. But they get the wins and that is all that matters.

On offense they have a good motion offense.  It is a departure from the run and gun offenses that we have seen from Syracuse in the past.  Not to say they can’t score quick, but they are more deliberate with their shooting.  They move the ball well almost too well, and at times try to force it inside when an outside shot is more than warranted.

This championship game, JoJo Marasco has the opportunity to steal away the Tewaaraton trophy from Rob Pannell with a superb performance on Monday as the committee seems to favor a player that carries a team on its back through Memorial day.  JoJo has been the face of the offense as he converted from attack to midfield and has 22Goals and 41 Assists.

Lamolinara posted a 50% save percentage and seemed to stay home a lot more.  If he is to beat duke, he needs to get active like he did against Yale, and making plays.

On defense, the Syracuse Orange has been solid holding opponents to under 10 goals the past 7 straight games.  The question will be again on Ianzito as he suffered an ankle injury against Yale, yet played against Denver.  We followed him, and he seemed to play a little softer, a little lighter in the fourth quarter.  If he can play the full game at 100%, he could make the difference in slowing down a Duke offense that is rolling.

Face Offs favor  Duke obviously, but what can they do.  Syracuse needs to mess him up if they want a chance at this game.  John Danowski explained that Fowler, “came off a broken clavicle last year against Syracuse where he broke his clavicle clean through”.  I am not saying Syracuse needs to play dirty, but remember where your opponent has its weakness, as well as the fact YOU caused that weakness.  Stick a pole on FO and try to “fight” for it.  Syracuse face offs, while still struggling won 9 of 21 against Denver.  While it may seem inconsequential, they won only 6 of 40.  So this is an improvement.

While I think Duke is more talented by far, I see this as a game of wills.  And Syracuse has that will, that fight, that never say die attitude that will propel them to Champions in 2013.

Luke Cometti Scores Cuse first goal with 52 seconds left in first…

Could FO possession finally be a factor for Syracuse???

Cuse …Poor shot selection continues…

Denver scores another easy layup due to poor defense of Cuse…

Cometti scores again with 8:03 left in 2nd…Cuse 2 - Denver 4

LaPlante in net for Denver is making every save and it looks easy…

Denver scores with 6:04 left…

Syracuse is struggling shooting today, and stopping Denver…
Denver is just playing at the top of their game Denver 5 - Syracuse 2…

2nd half about to begin…After LaPlante posted 13 sves and only 2 goals against…he falls prey to the Tierney 2-goalie system and Jamie Faus takes over in net for Denver…

Denver gets first goal in second…6-2 Denver over Cuse

Marasco scores on a goal where Faus’ stick goes across the line and the official in an awsome accent yells out “Absoluutely” signifying goal for Cuse… Denver leads 6-3

Syracuse scores another with 4:30 left in the third…Mounting a mini-comeback…

Denver squashes any momentum with a goal of their own…7-4 Denver

Third is done and Denver holds the lead 7-4

Looks like Ianzito is finally feeling it in the 4th…looks to be walking a little softer and has lost a step…

JoJo nice move and beautiful look…threads the needle to Maltz…Denver 7 - Cuse - 5

Great look from Donahue to Scott Loy…Denver 7 - Cuse 6

Hammlin for Cuse starts to slide to Inazito’s man but Ianzito pushes him past GLE…Hammlin gets caught and Ianzito’s man passes to open Denver player on crease

2:42 left…Denver gets one deserved penalty and one dive from Marasco draws a second Denver penalty…Cuse 2 men up…can they do ANYTHING with it???

7 seconds into it, JoJo Marasco scores…Denver 8 Cuse 7

The comeback kids are doing it again… JoJo to Cometti…Tied up 8 all with 58 seconds

Syracuse gets ensuing FO calls TO…

Cometti drives and shoots…stopped Faus…Maltz picks up the garbage and scores with 19 seconds…Cuse’s first lead of the game…

Off FO all Syracuse has to do is tie it up, but Denver wins cleanly and calls time out with 7 seconds left in the game…

Denver off the time out passes behind and wastes at least 5 seconds passing around behind before getting it up top…

CUSE WINS

Tie game…really? Cornell has been outplaying Duke for the most part, but just can’t seem to convert, while Duke on the other hand are vultures.

Duke takes the lead 7- 6 with 1:07 left in the 2nd quarter

35 seconds left in the half, Cornell ball…Pannell couldn’t tie it..

7-6 Duke over Cornell at the half.

Start of 2nd…

Duke goal with 11:29 left by Christian Walsh on EMO…

No excuse for Duke’s 9th goal from Case Mathias…Fiore should have smothered that.

Duke scores another EMO goal…

Duke’s 11th goal…did it really go in?

Duke scores #12…Fiore…are you awake?

Tripuka scores his third of the day.  Takes ball from restraining line…moves in and no one pressures him…Cornell looks lost.

Duke’s 14th goal…Slide missed? Cornell Defense still looks lost

Cornell gets one back on a goal from Pannell.

14 - 7 Duke with 1 quarter left to go…

Cornell scores off an *assist* *cough cough* from Pannell…14-8 Duke over Cornell

I always thought it was 3 steps before a player didn’t get credit for an assist…Happy birthday RP…

Buczek scores again to make it 14-9 Duke…Cornell really needs to start pressuring with 10 mintes left…

Pannell overpasses to English but he nabs it and shovel shoots…GOAL….

Pannell TIES the scoring record on his 4th goal of the game…8:37 left…Duke 14 Cornell 11

Pannell scores ANOTHER unassisted…his 5th of the game…pulls Cornell within 2…Hows that feel Danowski as Pannell breaks the record agianst Duke?

Off a questionable “tip” call ball is given back to Duke, and they score (Lawson).  Duke 15 Cornell 12

Fiore snags a lazy pass between Duke attack giving the ball to Cornell…leads to Cornell possession and EMO opportnity

1:31 left and Cornell goal by #18…Cornell 13 Duke 15…

Cornell wins ensuing FO only to get a crease violation…Duke ball with 1:17 left…Cornell gets it back and scores with 52 seconds left…
Duke 15 Cornell 14

Duke’s Jordan Wolf seals the deal with a goal…38.8 seconds left…Duke 16 Cornell 14

Duke advances in a win over Cornell…

Cornell is coming into this game 14-3 on the year with wins over Yale, Prince, Maryland, and OSU. Their losses included Bucknell, Syracuse, and Princeton.
Yet they feel they are the underdogs.

Or another way to look at it is…this is destiny.

Rob Pannell is in his fifth year due to injury, and yet has broken Cornell records, and is poisedo break Matt Danowski’s NCAA scoring record as well. He is almost gauranteed the Tewaaraton award barring herculian efforts from any of the other finalists still in it. Rob came back this year for a ring. He is destined to break records, and win awards. The team is rallying around Rob’s work ethic, and really seems destined to go far. But first tings first…they have to beat Duke.

On Offense, Cornell is led by Rob Pannell with 42Goals and 53Assists, Steve Mock with 59G, 9A, and Connor Buczeck with 32G, 17A.
They are just blowing up opponents right now as in the past two games, Pannell has 6G and 9A, and Steve Mock has 11G. It isn’t like Pannell and Mock came out of nowhere. These two have been the key to Cornell offense this season, and everyone is planning against them but no one can stop them.

In goal is AJ Fiore. Fiore has posted an 8.49 Goals Against Average with a save percentage of 52.9%. However he is inconsistent. In the past two games he has improved to a 7.0GAA and save percentage of 61%. However when he is bad, he is horrible like in the Syracuse and Princeton losses (13.5 GAA and save percentage of 32.5%).

Duke is coming off two one goal wins, and somehow…just does it.
Duke is 14-5 on the year with wins over Loyola (twice), UNC, and Notre Dame. They have losses to Denver, Notre Dame, Penn, Maryland, and UNC.
Duke is also entering their seventh Final Four ina row. Unfortuantely they are 2-4 so far with only one Championship o show for it. Coach John Danowski is nonchalant in his concern. Is it a motivational factor, “Nah. Last year was so long ago”. Might as well call him Coach Guy on the Couch. (Anyone get that reference?).

On the year, Duke is led by Jordan Wolfe with 49G, 25A; Josh Dionne with 40G, 5A; and David Lawson 32G, 15A. Case Matheis is playing particularly well of late watch out for him as well.
Duke’s main concern is in goal. After Wigrizer announced he was done playing due to concussions, Kyle Turri became the man posting a 9.28 GAA, and save percentage of 48.7%. Not Championship winning numbers. Especially considering he officially recorded 2 saves versus Notre Dame and 11 goals against (I would have given him 4 saves). Yet in coach Danowski’s eyes, Kyle is a winner”.

Key to the game will be face offs. One o the biggest bright spots for Duke is their FO unit. Brendan Fowler is one of the best with a win percentage of 65.7% this year. He has the ability to dominate ANYONE he faces. Cornell’s only counter punch is to play it as a whole three on three. While Cornell has won 55.9% of their face offs, they are already prepping to face Fowler.

The other key to victory in a potential tight game is special teams. As Cornell coach Ben DeLuca pointed out, it is important to have an effective Man Up offense specifically as you go further in the tournament. So far in the past two games, Cornell has converted 3 of 4 opportunities on Man Up (75%), while opponents have converted an amazing 0 of 8 (0%) against Cornell. Duke has converted 2 of 10 opportunities (20%), and their opponents have converted 7 of 11 (64%).

While possession is important, I think the tipping point in this game will be special teams. How good is your Man Up unit versus your Man Down unit.
Cornell is getting better including Fiore, and Duke just keeps on keeping on.

I am going with Cornell on this one.

Coaches Desko and Coach Tierney have faced each other in NCAA tournament battles of the 90s and 00s. Coach Tierney said of their history, that when he arrived at Denver, one of the first calls he made was to Desko to set up the first game for Denver with Coach Tierney at the helm against Syracuse…in the Carrier Dome. Tierney told Desko that he wanted his guys to know what it took to be a championship team, and there was nothing more daunting than playing Syracuse in the Dome.
It was a nod of respect to coach Desko, but also could it have been a forewarning of what was yet to come.

Denver enters this game at 14-4 with wins over Duke, Lehigh, Penn, OSU, Albany, UNC. Their losses were to Penn State, Notre Dame, Fairfield, and OSU. OSU, Fairfield, and NotreDame were all 1 goal losses.
Their most recent win came in a thriller against UNC.
Denver came out struggling shooting (6 pipes in first half, and MANY shots sailed high), had trouble switching to defense in the transition game, and Ryan LaPlante faced his own difficulties making only 1 save, and letting in 6 in under 10 minutes. Faus came in and kept Denver in it posting 11 saves with only 5 goals against (69%). It was uncharacteristic play by the whole team in that first quarter as they were trailing 6-1 before the second quarter started. The second and third quarters, Denver made adjustments and started to claw back, before really taking it to UNC in Face Offs (5 of 6), Shots (16 to 5), ground balls (9 to 3), and most importantly goals (5 to 1).

For the year, Denver’s offense is led by Eric Law with 40Goals, 35Assists; Wes Berg with 56G, 16A; and Cameron Flint with 36G,14A.
Law and Berg have really upped the ante in the last two games combining for 25 points (7G/4A, and 12G/2A respectively).
The same can be said about Chase Carraro taking the face-off. During the year he averaged 57.8%, and during the last two games, 63.9%.
In goal, Coach Tierney uses a two goalie system. Ryan LaPlante starts the game (10.1 Goals Against Average, Save percentage 55.7%), and Jamie Faus finishes it (9.1GAA, Save percentage 56.7%). It is a system that can come under fire especially when one of the goalies has an off day like LaPlante did against UNC, but the fact is it has worked so far this year. In the Denver coaching staff’s collective mind, there is no question. When asked if Faus might start, Coach Tierney answered with an authoritative “Absolutely not.” He added that immediately after the game they went over to LaPlante and told him he was starting next week.

Syracuse enters this game at 15-3 with wins over Hopkins, Princeton, Cornell, Notre Dame (twice), and Yale. They lost to Albany, Villanova, and Hobart

Syracuse is coming off of a tough win against Yale. Tough in the fact they almost beat themselves right out of the tournament. Syracuse started off hot like they usually do, leading 4 to 1 at the end of the first quarter. That’s when the foot lets off the gas a little and by the third quarter, they are just playing sloppy. Add to the slop, the fact that the Syracuse offense this year is more deliberate. Not to say they can’t run and gun, but on offense, but this year, they settle down more and look for that perfect look. Many times this year, they are looking to make one too many passes or trying to force the ball in for a close shot. Syracuse needs to realize they have guys that can shoot and not be overly deliberate in shot selection. They finally found their rhythm (or desperation) in the fourth quarter after a scoring drought of over 40 minutes…Syracuse…no goals in 40 minutes…let that simmer.

For the year, Syracuse is led in scoring by JoJo Marasco with 20G, 38A; Kevin Rice with 22G, 29A; and Luke Cometti with 30G, 9A.
In net is Dominic Lamolinara, who for the year has an 8.12 GAA, and a save percentage of 54.2. In his last game against Yale, while his save percentage was 60%, it was everything else he did that kept them in the game. Lamolinara was active in the crease, disrupting passes (credited with 2 caused turnovers), going after loose balls in the vicinity, keeping his defense together, and Syracuse in the game against a deceivingly good Yale team.
Overall the Syracuse defense from close defense to the middies, they have improved all season. They may have started off looking a little timid, but have since gelled and are holding opponents in check.

Let us not forget about the elephant in the room. Face-Offs. This has been a problem for a number of years for Syracuse. This year is no different. The bigger concern is that entering the tournament, they were at 45.7% which is worrisome, but not panic mode. However IN the tournament Syracuse has won just 6 face offs out of 40. That is 15%. The further you get in the tournament, the more valuable those possessions are. If Syracuse was still in the mid 40% range, it would not be as big of a concern.

Lastly, probably the biggest concern for Syracuse is the injury to Steve Ianzito.
Ianzito has been a tough Short Stick Defensive Middie all year. He has taken on some tough opponents and been a real leader on defense. In the Yale game he badly twisted an ankle and was on crutches on the sideline by the end of the game. Coach Desko is not sure Ianzito will be ready, but if you ask Steve, you’ll get a completely opposite answer. Even if he can play, at what percent will he be at? How many steps will he be behind? The concern here is that Denver’s middies are a huge part of their offense. If Ianzito is out how do you cover all of Denver’s threats?

Syracuse just doesn’t look hungry for it. After the slow start against Bryant, that should have been the wake up call to play lights out against Yale. The offense showed up for the first quarter, but then disappeared.

With Denver hitting their peak, and everyone on the team stepping up their game, while Syracuse continues to stall, I am picking Denver in this one.

Denver is coming off of a great game against Albany.  The Pioneers proved they could score plenty as they beat Albany 19-14. Wesley Berg put up 8 goals himself. Not a typo. He did it in a variety of was.  When playing in the crease he was able to get two quick stick layups.  When he moved out to the wings, he scored two no-angle risers into the corners.  And all three of his EMO goals, I thought I was watching one goal in repeat.  He played up top and Denver moved the ball around.  Each time it got to opposite GLE, the Pioneers looked to Berg on the skip pass as he cheated and sloughed in.  Each time he received the pass in the center and had time to rip a shot.  I guess if you find something that works…why change it?

In goal, Denver continues to start with Ryan LaPlante for the first half, and switch to Jamie Faus for the second half.  I hate this style, but then again it has worked for Denver all year.  That is why Bill Tierney makes the big bucks, and I just watch. LaPlante has a slight edge over Faus, but Faus’s saves are typically the once you don’ even expect him to make.  Wether it is to keep each goalie fresh (physically and mentally), or to make it even more difficult for opponents to adjust and find a weakness.  It is actually working.

The one thing the Pioneers need to improve on is the defense needs to slide better (know when to and be decisive). A number of Albany goals could have been attributed to a late or missed slide.

UNC put up 16 against Lehigh and has just as many offensive threats as Denver. The bigger take away from the Lehigh game was how UNC’s defense came together and stepped it up a notch both close D and the middies .  UNC is facing a tougher offense in Denver compared to Lehigh.  On he flip side, UNC will play much ighter on Denver’s shooters than Albany did.  There is no way Berg scores 8 (especially those 3 EMO goals).

I like both teams and it will be a shame one’s season has to end.  Overall I like Denver’s chances this year on the whole field.  I like coach Tierney and think he has the edge as a coach.
I hate to say a team “chokes”, but UNC has had a wealth of talent for numerous years, but has never managed to do anything with it.

Ohio State is coming off a thrashing of Towson (16 - 6) and is on a seven game streak with 10+ goals.  OSU is scoring and look in sync on all sides of the field

Cornell is entering this game after a similar thrashing of Maryland (16 - 8).  Similarly, Cornell is looking good, but

Lets cut right to the chase on this game.  It will come down to two things only.
Can OSU contain Rob Pannell, and will Fiore bring his “A” game?

In Cornell’s losses to Syracuse and Princeton, Pannell was held to 2 or less goals.  More importantly in those 2 losses, Fiore gave up 27 goals and made 13 saves (Save percentage 32.5%).

Pannell is a Tewaaraton finalist, one of the most prolific offensive players in Ivy and NCAA history, and one of the most important pieces to this Cornell team.  How will OSU stop him?
No one has really been able to figure it out because when he doesn’t score goals, he is getting assists.  You can’t stop Pannell…just try to contain/slow him down.
His passing and vision is superb and it shows as he has 47 assists on the year.  While he has put up 40 goals, his actual shooting percent is lowly 26%.  If I had to plan against him, I would try to lock him out and play 5 on 5.  Lock him off, try and get him frustrated and make some bad decisions… of which he hasn’t all year, but there has to be a first.

Since there really is no stopping Pannell, the only other option for OSU is to just score more goals.  While not as inconsistent as Duke’s Wigirizer, Fiore has OK games, and then he has games that are simply wretched.  Look at the 2 losses.  Don’ get me wrong, Fiore is a good goalie, just when he is off…its real bad.

While I think OSU will at least be able to slow down Pannell, at this point Fiore will be bringing his A game, and Cornell should be able to get by OSU by a couple.

This match up features a Syracuse team that really is coming together at the right time.  After starting the season ranked out of the top 10, and a loss to Albany, the questions started.  Did they lose too many players? Will they survive with a weak FO unit?
The Orange finished the season strong.  After the loss to Hobart, Syracuse’s defense started to get it together, and play harder and tighter.  After that loss, no opponent has scored more than 9 goals against them and is averaging less than 6 goals against. On the offensive side of the ball, Kevin Rice has picked it up a level scoring 6G,5A in the past 3 games.

Yale is tough.  They have never really been out of a game all year, never losing by more than 2, and in most of their wins, they trailed early.
They are coming off a win against Penn State in a win that Yale fought back after trailing 5-1 at the half.  They made he proper adjustments and came out strong.  They keys of he second half turn around were at least winning 50% of the face offs compared to not winning a single FO in the first half.  They also came out shooting hard and often (23shots in the second half compared to 11 in the first).  Watching them keep their composure and play solidly on defense against PSU, should have the Orange faithful at least a little nervous.

I like the fact Yale plays hard, makes adjustments, and never seems to get down on themselves.  They are fun to watch as you never know who is going to score.  Syracuse is going to come out strong especially after the way they opened the Bryant game.  However one of Syracuse’s faults is during the year, they have let teams climb back.  Syracuse has taken an early lead in many games only to watch it disappear as they seem to have a habit of taking their foot off the gas.  If you are familiar with Syracuse Basketball, you also know what I am talking about.

I like Syracuse in this one, but I think it will be a 1 goal game, and wouldn’t be surprised if Yale pulls out an upset.

Notre Dame made it past Detroit last week by the skin of their teeth.   After playing miserably all day, the team pulled a 180 and won in the 4th quarter.  Sure they changed to a 10 man ride in the 4th, but that is only part of the reason they won.  The other parts were equal amount of desperation and just having a deeper bench.  Their passes weren’t crisp, they looked slow on offense and defense…just in a fog.

In the past 3 games, Notre Dame has lost twice to Syracuse and barely escaped Detroit.  Through their two losses and 3 of 4 quarters with Detroit, Notre Dame was outscored 10 - 26, outshot 65 - 95, outhustled on ground balls 58 - 86, outplayed on special teams converting 0 of 8 Extra Man Opportunities compared to their opponents 3 of 7, they turned the ball over more (44 - 35), and won less faceoffs (18 - 26).  Even if you aren’t a stat guy, those are startling numbers for a “#2″ team

Duke has made it to this round with a double overtime win against Loyola in a thriller of a game.  Case Matheis was smooth under pressure scoring the game tying goal (garbage, but a G is a G) with just over a minute left in regulation, and scoring the game winner with about 2 minutes left in the 2nd overtime.
Duke’s offense is rolling.  They haven’t scored less than 10 goals in 2 months (March 13).  At the Face-Off circle, Brendan Fowler RARELY loses (65%), Kyle Turri is playing better in goal, and the ball just seems to bounce Duke’s way.  If I had to pick one thing bad about Duke, it was that they struggled on EMO (2 of 10) against a Loyola team that put alot of laundry on the field.

Earlier in the season, these two teams faced each other in a lopsided win for Notre Dame.  That game means nothing, as these teams are not the same ones that met in early February.

Duke is playing well, and making minimal mistakes.  While I don’t see them spreading out Notre Dame’s defense or stalling as much as Detroit did, they don’t need it.
With Duke’s offense and dominance of face offs, they have this one in the bag unless Notre Dame finds a truck load of Zoloft on their way to Indianapolis.