Shortly after Davidson’s R.J. Greer checked into a game at Dayton on Feb. 15, he rotated toward the opposing bench during an offensive sequence.
One of the Dayton coaches was quick to yell out to his players on defense to track him into the corner.
The Flyers’ coach didn’t need to reference the roster or the scouting report to know who the Wildcat wearing No. 7 was. He had a pretty good idea of the player’s background.
“I ran to the corner, and I immediately heard my dad telling one of their players, ‘Shooter! Shooter!’ It kind of caught me by surprise at first,” Greer chuckled. “But it was such a cool thing to be able to play against him.”
The Dayton assistant coach who was barking instructions at his players was Ricardo Greer. He is R.J.’s father and a former standout at Pitt.
Now, both men will be on the same floor this week at PPG Paints Arena as part of the Atlantic 10 Tournament.
“It’s going to be great. I’ll be there cheering for him,” Ricardo Greer said. “It’s just a surreal moment to see that your son is in the same conference. You know he’s trying to do the same thing that you’re doing. So you’re cheering for him until he plays against you.”
That’s something the two Greers shouldn’t have to worry about for a while. As the No. 6 seed, Davidson plays its first game of the tournament on the bottom side of the bracket at 7:30 p.m. Thursday against Loyola-Chicago. That’ll be after Duquesne battles Rhode Island at 5 p.m.
As the fourth seed, the Flyers don’t open competition until Friday’s quarterfinal round at 2 p.m. against either George Mason or St. Bonaventure. Davidson and Dayton wouldn’t have to face one another until Sunday’s championship game if necessary.
“I might look (at Dayton’s results). But I’m strictly Davidson,” R.J. said. “I want the Wildcats to win. I might give him a ‘Congratulations’ text after a game. But at the end of the day, we’ll probably have to go through them to win it.”
It was R.J.’s father who actually opened the door to Davidson. Ricardo planted a seed during a handshake line with Davidson coach Matt McKillop when R.J. was still in high school.
“I had scouted Davidson for three or four years. I just saw the way that they played, understood their offense,” Ricard Greer recalled. “So I told Coach McKillop, ‘Man, I’ve got a recruit for you. I’m not sure if you’re looking for someone, but this kid might be pretty good.’ He said, ‘Who?’ And I told him about my son.”
After an initial commitment to N.C. State, Greer re-opened his recruitment and ended up at Davidson. In his first year, Greer has gotten into 17 games and has averaged 3.4 points per game.
“The offensive scheme and game plan that they’ve had for years has been great. It reminds me a lot of what I played in high school,” R.J. said. “So we just kind of thought that it was the best fit.”
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As for the elder Greer, the prospect of winning an A-10 title in Pittsburgh would be particularly special for him. As a Panther from 1997-2001, Greer helped bridge the gap between the Ralph Willard and Ben Howland eras. He did so by collecting 1,753 points, 888 rebounds, and two All-Big East awards.
“That’d be like a dream come true, being able to go back to what I call my hometown. I was born and raised in New York. But, so many unbelievable memories of Pittsburgh,” Greer said. “Just everyone who was able to help me grow as a man, walking in there as a young boy. It would be great to cut those nets down on Sunday.”
The last time Dayton played at PPG Paints Arena, it was a 73-69 win Jan. 7, 2020. That was part of a 29-2 campaign that was cut short of the NCAA Tournament thanks to the coronavirus pandemic. The prospect of winning a title on that floor and gaining an NCAA bid is something that Greer is craving.
“When I played here, I was never able to win a championship,” Greer lamented. “But even though I’m not at the University of Pittsburgh, being able to go to Pittsburgh and try to win one would be amazing.”
Greer is only upset about one thing. Should the Flyers win, he can’t get the celebratory meal he desired.
“I was hoping that ‘The O’ was still open to get a hot dog and some fries.”
Maybe a Primanti’s and one of those congratulatory texts from R.J. will suffice.
Well, unless his son and the rest of the Wildcats go on a run and win it all themselves.