Lindenwood Team Camp: Friday’s Best Of:
The Lindenwood University Team camp brought together some excellent teams from the St. Louis metro area from both the Missouri and Illinois sides of the river. Here is a look at some of the “Best Of” from Friday’s games:
Best Player: E.J. Liddell 6’7″ (Belleville West, IL ’19) – The young power forward from metro east Illinois was dominant in leading the Maroons to three victories on the day. He was a force with the ball within 15 feet of the basket. He scored tough baskets in the post, ran the court for emphatic slam dunks and got plenty of buckets on offensive rebounds. He is skilled, athletic and plays with a high motor. E.J. has already garnered a bunch of Division I offers.
Best Shooter: Brooks Ford 6’2″ (DeSmet ’18) – The talented marksmen was definitely on target in the Spartans’ first game against St. Mary’s as he scored more than 20 points and knocked down several 3-pointers, including four in the first half. He displayed a quick release off the catch and also made jumpers in transition.
Best Athlete: Atavian Butler 6’2″ (McCluer North ’19) – The athletic wing was a missle in the Stars’ victory over Kirkwood in the first game. He recorded five slam dunks and he did it with variety as he dunked in transition, off the half court and also threw down a couple of alley-oop dunks. It got to where kids playing on the other courts were stopping to watch the show.
Best Passer: Yuri Collins 5’11” (St. Mary’s ’19) – The talented point guard returned to action after missing a couple of weeks with a toe injury. He showed off his flashy handles, but as usual, he was on point with some of the dimes that he was dropping to open teammates. Collins recently received his first Division I offer from Saint Louis U.
Best Stock Riser: Malachi Smith 6’3″ (Belleville West, IL ’18) – The athletic wing player has been playing excellent ball throughout the spring in grassroots play. He had an excellent all-around game in the Maroons’ victory over Whitfield as he scored buckets, rebounded, handled the ball and played some spirited defense against Whitfield’s top Division I prospect Torrence Watson.
Best Defender: E.J. Liddell 6’7″ (Belleville West, IL ’19) – Not only did Liddell dominate on the offense end, he may have been more impressive on the defensive end with his shot blocking. In the victory over Whitfield, I had him down for eight swats. And he did it without fouling as the displayed tremendous timing.
Best Game: Belleville West-Whitfield – These two excellent teams put on a good show as West came away with a 53-49 victory. West has been dominating teams in June competition, but it got a stiff challenge from Whitfield from start to finish. Belleville West got a dominant performance from heralded 2019 big E.J. Liddell, but the Warriors’ 6’4″ 2019 tandem on Cyrus Alexander and Luther Taylor also played well. The duel between Whitfield’s Division I prospect Torrence Watson and emerging ’18 recruit Malachi Smith was also fun to watch.
Most Unheralded Prospect: Zach Harding 6’6″ (Christian-O’Fallon ’18) – A long and lanky combo forward who has a versatile skill set. He got buckets in the post with a nice turnaround jumper in the lane, but he could step out and knock down 3-pointers off the catch. He is a good ball handler and he also delivered several nice back door passes to cutting teammates.