Liddell makes the short list
JOE HENRICKSEN
No. 1
After a second consecutive state championship, maybe the legacy of Belleville West’s EJ Liddell will be fully recognized, appreciated and remembered.
Liddell’s impact on the game has been unmatched the last two seasons. He’s a versatile scorer with range out to the three-point line. He has advanced feel, footwork and soft hands around the basket. He’s a rebounding machine and an underrated passer. The 6-7, 230-pounder is a disruptive force defensively. Blocking and altering shots is second nature.
The Ohio State recruit scored just over a whopping 2,500 career points, joining a short list of state greats.
Since the arrival of state player rankings decades ago, there have been only four players in Illinois history to be the top-ranked player in their respective class and win multiple state championships. Now there are five.
The list starts with East St. Louis Lincoln’s LaPhonso Ellis, who won titles in 1987 and ’88. Peoria Central’s Shaun Livingston won in 2003 and ’04. The Simeon duo of Derrick Rose and Jabari Parker won two and four titles, respectively.
Selfishly, the only downer from his fabulous career is that he wasn’t a regular attraction for all of us in the Chicago area to see.
No. 2
Lost in Evanston’s run to a state runner-up finish and all of the success the Wildkits have enjoyed in recent years is the vision and commitment of the athletic program.
When the basketball job opened nearly a decade ago, Evanston’s administration, including athletic director Chris Livatino, didn’t settle. The proud, tradition-rich basketball program was attractive, but the administration made a concerted effort to fill the coaching position with one of the best young coaches in the state.
Mike Ellis was part of a high school basketball hotbed in Peoria, where he led Peoria Richwoods to six regional titles, three sectional championships and two secondplace finishes in the state in seven years. Evanston targeted the accomplished and respected Ellis, and the hire has paid huge dividends.
Evanston has won four sectional titles since Ellis took over in 2010 and has averaged 25 wins in the last six years. Plus, the Wildkits have third-place and second-place state hardware in the trophy case.
Ellis has become the most successful coach in the storied history of Evanston basketball.
No. 3
The southern part of the state flexed its muscle this month.
A pair of St. Louis Metro East teams from the same conference won state titles as Belleville West and East St. Louis captured Class 4A and 3A championships, respectively. This is the first time since the arrival of the four-class system that a Chicago-area school didn’t win a state championship.
Plus, Nashville, which is 40 miles southeast of Belleville, finished second in the state in Class 2A.
And while Belleville West’s Liddell has been a household name in Illinois prep hoops, Peoria was also a stage for one of the state’s overlooked stars to be seen. Terrence Hargrove, a physically gifted 6-7 forward from East St. Louis, was terrific. In two wins, he scored 51 points, pulled down 22 rebounds and blocked nine shots.
Hargrove has been among the City/Suburban Hoops Report’s top five prospects in Illinois and is headed to Saint Louis next season.