BY RIDGE MAHONEY, Senior Editor The sights of Landon Donovan dancing around the goalkeeper to slide the ball into the net from a sharp angle — not once but twice — and Clint Mathis flicking a ball into the bottom corner may not be repeated in the World Cup, yet in those images is the changing persona of this team. The U.S. team of 2002 is an aggressor, a hungry predator. If it must lie in wait it will, but it prefers the hunt. As it did against El Salvador in the Gold Cup, the U.S rolled over an inferior opponent by dismantling Honduras, 4-0, March 2. Against the Salvadorans, the U.S. relentlessly exploited the flanks. The U.S. had plenty of wide play against Honduras but also throttled its opponents in the middle of the field. The Hondurans were lacking most of their attacking force: No Milton Nunez, no Carlos Pavon, no Julio De Leon. There was no Samuel Cabellero to battle and soar in central defense. Their midfield crumbled quickly once Mathis and Donovan and Brian McBride and Chris Armas hit their stride. Rough tackles and elbow shots and ankle chops failed to disrupt the U.S. rhthym. Mendoza uprooted Donovan in the first minute and McBride hit the ground repeatedly. The stoppages didn’t derail the U.S. It either took the restarts quickly to keep the momentum or worked a sweet set play like the one that produced Mathis’ header for the first goal. That goal was also a good example of intelligent crossfield passing. Outside backs Richard Mulrooney and Agoos not only played balls up the line but found Mathis and McBride with balls driven to the opposite side of the field. Agoos’ free kick to the far side of the penalty area was headed back into the middle by McBride for Mathis to nod into the net. Mathis is short of fitness and that goal was not so easy. He had to check his run and jump back slightly to meet the ball and place his header perfectly, because there was no way to generate much power. As a comparison, McBride — whose prowess in the air is unquestioned — drilled a header from a Mathis cross right to the keeper when completely unmarked. But with diligent work in the attacking half of the field, as well as two assists and a third header that provided Brian Maisonneuve with a great chance, McBride had one of his best U.S. games. Donovan’s scoring instincts continue to dazzle. He plays up front from San Jose but is just as dangerous out wide or coming through from midfield as he showed by running onto Armas’ deft pass and rounding keeper Victor Coello for the second goal. On the fourth goal, when the ball bounced up, he nodded it right back down and again took it wide of the keeper. He hit several goals in just that manner for the Quakes last year. Armas has looked hungrier and sharper than he did in many of the qualifiers. He is tougher in his tackles — getting a full foot on the ball rather than just a toe — and more decisive when dealing with loose balls. The defense had a few problems with Saul Martinez and Daniel Turcios, who were starved of midfield support for much of the game. A blown offside trap let in Martinez, who struck a low blast that would have beaten a lot of keepers. Kasey Keller stopped it and covered up the rebound, demonstrating again his ability to pull off the big save. A few risky decisions by Pablo Mastroeni, whose mastery of the ball is a major plus, could have been costly. Twice he rushed out of the middle and was stranded; he pulled Martinez back by the jersey once but the foul was not called and Eddie Pope’s interception negated the other situation. Pope tackled well, moved into passing lanes at the right time, and also showed an encouraging willingness to pass the ball forward rather than sideways. Mulrooney and Maisonneuve, who play centrally for their clubs, did all right on the right side. Mulrooney’s forays up the flank allowed Maisonneuve to tuck into the middle, and the Crew midfielder also got forward twice to threaten the Honduran goal. Of the players that started the 3-2 Honduras victory in a qualifier at RFK Stadium last September, the opponents had just two. The U.S. had four, and among the absences that day were Mathis and McBride. With them in the lineup, Honduras — a team the U.S. should have beaten — was obliterated.