COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Friday night's CCL match up between St. Charles and Bishop Ready didn’t disappoint. It was a tight contest that went down to the wire as St Charles hung on late to capture a 56-49 win.

St Charles got off to a sloppy start with the majority of their early possessions ending in turnovers. Bishop Ready took full advantage of this, jumping out to an early 9-2 lead behind a quick five points from Darius Parham. St Charles woke up late in the quarter, but trailed 16-10 after one quarter of play. 

The Cardinals came out the second quarter with a ton of energy. They played excellent defense, holding Bishop Ready to just six points while scoring 14 of their own, helping them capture a 26-24 lead at the half.

St Charles momentum carried over into the second half as they saw their lead grow to eight, the biggest of the game for either team.

After three they led 41-33 and although Bishop Ready cut the lead to just one in the fourth quarter, that was as close as they got as St Charles. made their free throws and came up with some big steals late to close it out. 

For St Charles., Derrick James had a game high 18 points, Ryan Utt added 13 and Chase Walker added nine. 

For Bishop Ready, Parham had 13 , PJ Daniels had 10 and Garrison Budd added nine of his own.

Derrick James (5’9 G / St Charles / 2022): James started off slow but started to heat up later on, really showing  off his catch and shoot ability where he knocked down three triples. Most impressive  tonight were the plays he made late in the  game on defense, coming up with several big steals in crunch time. He also got his teammates involved and finished with a handful of assists. Undersized but never outworked, James is pound for pound one of the best guards in the area.

Chase Walker (6’8 C / St Charles / 2023): Walker had a good game tonight. He did his job on the glass, finished well inside and converted at the line when fouled. What stood out the most tonight was some truly elite passes the sophomore made out of the post. You can tell he’s getting used to seeing doubles and getting more comfortable with them. Walker is one 2023 to keep a close eye on.

Darius Parham (6’3 WG / Bishop Ready / 2021): Parham got off to hot start tonight. He showed his ability to be a threat off ball scoring on some hard cuts and knocking down some catch and shoot opportunities. When the shot stopped falling, he showed his value on defense, playing at a high level on that end of the floor all night. He provided great on ball pressure and came up with some steals. He had a nice block as well. Parham is one of the states more underrated unsigned seniors and is a player scholarship programs should consider taking a look at.