West uses fourth-quarter surge to defeat Ladue in first round of Vianney Tournament

The new-look Belleville West Maroons gave coach Joe Muniz reason for optimism Monday.

Fifth-seeded West overcame a two-point deficit with a 14-0 run late in the fourth quarter and pulled away for a 66-56 victory over the fourth-seeded Ladue Rams in the first round of the 49th annual Vianney Invitational Tournament.

Freshman Eric “E.J.” E.J. Liddell topped the Maroons with 19 points, while senior Andy Behrmann and junior Elijah Powell scored 14 points apiece. The 6-foot-6 Liddell was 9-for-13 from the field and Behrmann hit three key 3-pointers.

“That was two really good teams going at it,” Muniz said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for them and what they do with their program. For our guys, with so much inexperience that we have out there, to handle the situation ... We shot good shots, we made good shots and we made our free throws down the stretch. And the biggest thing is we guarded.”

The Maroons will play top-seeded Hazelwood Central in the semifinals at 5 p.m. Wednesday. The Hawks thumped eighth-seeded Clayton in another first-round game Monday.

West trailed 13-12 after one quarter, then led 26-25 at halftime and 44-40 after three quarters. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Behrmann were followed by another 3 by Powell and a three-point play by junior Tyler Dancy that put the Maroons ahead 40-30 before Ladue got within four.

The Rams used a 7-0 run to take a 47-40 lead in the fourth quarter and led 54-52 on a layup by 6-6 senior Mark Rogers (25 points) with 3:33 to play.

That’s when West took charge by reeling off the next 14 points. Behrmann’s three-point play with 49 seconds to play gave the Maroons a 63-54 lead and all but sealed the outcome.

“We just had everybody come out and play hard,” Behrmann said. “We just had to execute in the second half. I started knocking down shots and we got the ball inside to E.J. Everybody started doing their job. All we want to do is win. We don’t want to play for ourselves.”

Liddell’s debut

Liddell, 14, was playing at Signal Hill Elementary School last year but made a seamless transition to varsity basketball in his debut for the Maroons.

Liddell made his first four shots and scored 11 first-half points, then chipped in with eight second-half points to keep the Maroons in the driver’s seat.

“It feels pretty good playing with these guys. They’re very fun to play with,” said Liddell, the cousin of former East St. Louis High and St. Louis University start Tommie Liddell.

“I was nervous at the beginning, but then I got into the game and got comfortable,” he said. “It was like I expected it to be: hard with a high-tempo.”

Liddell expects to spend most of his time around the basket, but he envisions himself being capable of wandering outside the paint and displaying a jump shot.

“I can shoot the 3, but my best shooting range is mid-range, free-throw line,” he said.

Muniz was encouraged by Liddell’s productivity and efficiency.

“He’s going to be a good player,” Muniz said. “This is a little bit different than playing at Signal Hill. I thought he handled himself real well. I’m not going to say I was surprised, because that’s just kind of how he is. We expect big things from him. He’s got a long way to go as a player, but he’s only a pup. If he keeps working hard, he’s going to have a great career here.

“One of the things that’s so important is he’s so coachable. We told him, ‘You can’t dribble when you’re getting double- and triple-teamed. You have to look opposite.’ He did that three times in a row and I think we hit three shots because of it. We have a hard time with seniors following those directions, let alone freshmen. You tell him something, he’s going to do it.”

Powell, like Liddell, enjoyed a strong debut. Powell was 4-for-4 from the field, including a pivotal 3-pointer, and 5-for-6 from the free-throw line.

“Powell was huge,” Muniz said. “He played exceptional. His rebounding, decision-making on the court ... You can’t worry solely about Tyler and E.J.”

Dancy’s foul trouble

Dancy will be a big part of the Maroons attack but he was plagued with foul trouble against Ladue and managed just eight points.

Dancy picked up his second foul with 5:24 to play in the first quarter, then registered his third foul with 5:54 left in the second quarter. He committed his fourth foul with 4:29 remaining in the game, then fouled out with 3:58 left.

“I think it shows our depth,” Muniz said. “Dalton Fox (a 6-4 junior) came in and did a great job. Logan Betz (a 6-2 junior) came in and did a great job. Jack Lanxon, he just started practicing full-time, 100 percent, two days ago. We kind of threw him in at the end just because he’s been there and done that last year. DeAndre Jackson (a 5-11 junior) did a good job.

“Our depth was huge.”

This story was originally published November 30, 2015 at 7:37 PM with the headline "West uses fourth-quarter surge to defeat Ladue in first round of Vianney Tournament."