Basketball

Steamroom stunner

Monticello’s defense staves off fired up Liberty stoked by crowd’s fervor and coach’s call to action

By RICHARD A. ROSS

LIBERTY, NY—A crucible is a piece of laboratory equipment used to contain chemical compounds when heating them to very high temperatures. Being subjected to such intense heat can permanently alter the composition of the contents, transforming them into something new and unique.

More simply put, what emerges from such heat and pressure can be markedly different from went in at the outset.

Liberty and Monticello entered a crucible on January 8, namely the Tribe’s steamy home gym, which reverberated with a din rendered by the Indians’ pep band and the deafening decibels emanating from the vociferous crowds cheering on both schools.

By night’s end, both teams had emerged fire-tested and stronger for the coming firestorm of the remainder of the season. Though Monticello came out with a 39-30 comeback win, it is safe to say both teams left the fiery fray with something to be proud of.

The two teams, overseen by masterful coaches Dick O’Neill of Monticello and Jason Semo of Liberty, gave their fans a night to remember. The county rivals played with unbridled intensity, each trying to penetrate the other’s steely defense to capture this year’s bragging rights, won by Monticello a year ago.

In similar fashion to the 2007 set to, the junior varsity game stoked the crowd to a near fever pitch. The game mirrored last year’s prelim with startling similarity. Monticello’s junior varsity dodged a late comeback by Liberty to eke out a narrow margin of victory. Just like a year ago, Liberty stormed back and missed a shot at the buzzer.

By the time the cheerleaders formed up to welcome their warriors, the joint was jumpin’ and thumpin’ with atmosphere.

The game bore no resemblance to an offensive shootout but was one where defense would prove king. Rife with early turnovers caused by nerves and pressure, both teams struggled to get to the rim. Liberty broke the early drought as Dashaun Williamson got a put back of his own shot nearly two minutes in, but Monticello’s Briar Patterson’s three-pointer gave Monticello the lead they would not relinquish until the fourth quarter.

Monticello got three points from William Watson and a trey from Dior Jackson to emerge with a paltry 9-4 lead at the end of the first period. Liberty’s only other points came from emerging standout Ivan Rivera.

The second quarter was another offensive miasma for both squads as each put up a mere six points. Monticello retained a bizarre 15-10 lead at the half. Back in the first quarter, Liberty had turned the ball over five times to Monticello’s three. But in the second quarter, Liberty forced eight Panther turnovers while committing only four.

Monticello’s Devon Mathis got inside penetration early in the second quarter to push the Panthers out to a seven-point lead, but Liberty did a great job of keeping the Panthers on the perimeter.

Basketball is usually a game of runs, but this game was severely limited in that regard.

That said, Liberty mounted one in the latter part of the third quarter that carried over into the early part of the fourth quarter to garner the lead. Liberty’s

Connor Hinton began the third quarter with a wide-open three from the top of the arc and Liberty battled to get within five by the end of the quarter, trailing 25-20 and appearing to assume the momentum.

Rivera, the only Indian to score in all four quarters, contributed three points in the frame. He’d end up with a team-high 10 on the night. Dustin VanLieu had only two as did Williamson, as O’Neill’s strategy of fronting Williamson in the post and applying Krazy Glue defense from Watson and Jackson on VanLieu paid off.

Prior to the game,O’Neill had challenged Watson, “They’re going to go as VanLieu goes. You can control this game from a defensive standpoint,” said the veteran coach. O’Neill noted that the strategy used on VanLieu was similar to that deployed a year ago against Sullivan West’s Kevin Cappiello and Saugerties’ Jonah Brill in Monticello’s sectional win over the Sawyers: make them give up the ball and deny them the chance to get it back.

VanLieu scored 25 in his team’s recent league win over Fallsburg, but the Panthers limited him to nine in this outing.

While recognizing that his new team still needs time to run its offensive sets with more efficiency, Semo hoped to garner a victory over his friend O’Neill in the iconic coach’s last season by using some defensive strategy of his own.

Pressure defense was one of Semo’s trademarks at Tri-Valley, where he coached the team that would ultimately go on to make a fabulous run to the regional finals last year, the year Semo left to assume the job of athletic director at Liberty.

During a key late stretch, Liberty stole three straight Monticello inbounds passes and converted them into lay-ups.

But in the end, Monticello’s defense dug in and shut down Liberty, which had stormed back from a 10-point deficit to take a 30-27 lead midway through the fourth quarter. Holding the Indians at bay for nearly the final four minutes, while finally finding a way to get to the basket, proved to be Monticello’s keyway to victory.

Turning that key was the game’s smallest player, but arguably the one with the biggest heart, Monticello senior Dior Jackson.

His timely passes and a crucial bucket and free throw sparked Monticello’s 12-0 run in the final four minutes. Jackson was abetted down the stretch by timely points from Kyle Wigfall, Jon Hernandez, Patterson and Watson, but what won the game was Monticello’s stifling help defense.

“Other teams may have more talented players than us,” said O’Neill, “but no one plays defense better than we do.”

Hard to argue that.

O’Neill’s revamped Panthers (4-8, 1-1) have played great defense in nearly all of their games, including their recent league loss to Cornwall. Monticello only trailed the dangerous Dragons by eight at the half.

Semo’s imprint on the Indians team is quickly becoming manifest. The Indians are young and ready to go to the ends of the earth to play for their coach. Already in the mix in their division, Liberty is set to emerge as a major player within the next year. “We’re playing for the first time in a new system. I’ve never coached these kids before (with the exception of Dustin and Ryan VanLieu) and they’re coming together as one. Now we need to maintain that for 32 minutes,” he said. He was proud of all of his players but cited Rivera as potentially very special.

Talk about a transformation. Liberty (3-7, 1-2 OCIAA) bears no resemblance to the teams of the past few years that were athletic but struggling.

Semo said he was privileged to play against O’Neill, a man he respects and reveres. “It’s an honor to shake his hand and have a few words with him after the game. He’s not just a great coach. Even more importantly, he’s a great person.”

O’Neill knows his team lacks a post presence, though Hernandez has stepped up big in the last two games. “We rely on our defense to create some easy shots,” he said. Referencing Liberty’s success in stealing inbounds passes, O’Neill admitted his team’s weakness in that regard. “We’re setting screens but we’re not using them.”

Watson led Monticello with 12 points. Hernandez netted nine points, Patterson had eight and Jackson scored six. The Panthers shot a rather dismal five for thirteen from the line. Liberty was two for six from the line, a function of Monticello’s strong defense that prevented their penetration to the basket.

Monticello continued its road wars following the Liberty game. They lost to Valley Central and then lost to Sullivan West (see “Will to Win,” page 32). Liberty lost a road league game against O’Neill on January 10 and played a non-league game at Class A Goshen on January 14.

Visit riverreportersports.com for an album of game photos.