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5 Keys: Bishop Ready remains perfect on the road at Bishop Watterson

By Zach Fleer, 01/07/23, 9:45AM EST

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Longtime coach Tony Bisutti was a magician in Friday's huge win

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- On the way to Bishop Watterson, Cooke Road provides a beautiful scenic drive through the forest with hills that loop and drop for a few miles before you reach the Eagles’ nest on the left side of the road. The rolling hills represent the typical high school basketball season of many ups and downs, which has been indicative of Watterson’s journey thus far.

For Bishop Ready, this season has been nothing but an ascent, as the Silver Knights went on the road and defeated Bishop Watterson to remain undefeated, 44-35.

It’s ironic that Ready sits on the top of the Hilltop, as the drive to get home from Watterson will take you all the way up Mound Street, which dead ends right next to the school. The Silver Knights are hoping their season will dead end at the state championship in Dayton, and Friday night’s gritty win was another step in that process.

Squaring off against a Watterson team that entered the game with six-straight wins, topped off with a triumphant win over previously unbeaten Bishop Hartley last Friday, Ready had their work cut out for them on the road. The Eagles were in control for most of the game, as a combination of shaky shooting and the interior dominance of Cole Rhett helped Watterson establish a first half lead. 

While his teammates weren’t able to get into a rhythm, Ready senior Charlie Russell carried the load offensively. Great teams require their leaders to step up when needed, and Russell did that and then some, helping the Silver Knights stay in striking distance, as Watterson went into the locker room at halftime holding a 24-19 lead on the back of 11 points from Rhett.

Under the direction of veteran coach Tony Bisutti, who is known for his meticulous preparation and ability to make in-game adjustments, Bishop Ready was not fazed by the halftime deficit. In a massive turn of momentum, Ready adjusted its off-ball defense of Rhett, denying the senior from quality paint touches, which held the Toledo football commit scoreless and completely changed the game.

Ready continued to hang on in the third quarter, keeping the deficit to one possession for most of the period. The Silver Knights did a great job of controlling the ball and getting quality looks and did not have its first lead since the first quarter until the very end of the third. Coming off the bench for massive minutes on Friday, junior Micah Germany hit a crucial three as time expired, which gave Ready a 29-28 advantage heading into the final frame.

Good teams start well, but great teams finish. And finish was the name of Ready’s game in the fourth quarter. On the back of Germany’s clutch triple, Ready went into sicko mode in the fourth. While he was unable to get into a shooting rhythm for long chunks in the game, senior Kaleb Schaffer stepped up when needed, knocking down a three and then a mid-range jumper on the ensuing possession to extend the Ready lead to 36-31 with 4:14 remaining. 

With Rhett unable to contribute offensively, Watterson was in a funk and could not get the quality looks they usually are able to muster, as Ready did an outstanding job protecting the rim and guarding the ball, most notably from senior Luke Ruth, who while only scoring two points, might have been the most important player in the game with his contributions on both ends of the floor. 

Ruth’s defense on Watterson’s second best offensive threat in senior Owen Samenuk was crucial, as the senior guard from Ready shut down the talented Samenuk with a defensive performance that almost looked personal. The senior Ruth, who was offered by Ohio Dominican earlier in the week, played with the type of grit that can push this team to where they want to go.

The game was put out of reach in an emphatic way when Russell had a powerful and-one bucket late in the game, giving Ready a 10-point lead and essentially ending any hope for a miraculous Watterson comeback. 

Capping off a 15-7 fourth quarter, Ready quieted a rowdy and massive Watterson student section that was relentless all night. Holding a 44-35 lead at the final horn, Ready improved to 10-0, but more importantly, 3-0 in the Central Catholic League with wins over powers like Watterson, St. Charles and DeSales. To get through the first half CCL slate unblemished, the Knights will have to defeat a rising but young Hartley team next Friday back home on the west side.

Russell was a superstar in the win on Friday, finishing with 20 points and 12 rebounds. His ability to hit jump shots in the half court helped Ready stay in the game and the Air Force baseball commit slammed the door shut with his athletic prowess in the fourth quarter. 

Schaffer added 11 points, coming alive in the fourth quarter, while Ruth was a jack of all trades with two points, eight assists, four rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Sophomore Kayden Schaffer had a strong performance, playing his role to perfection and finishing with eight points, four rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Germany’s go-ahead three to end the third quarter were his only points of the night, but wow, were they important. 

Watterson was led by 11 points from Rhett, scored almost entirely in the second quarter. Ready completely stifled the Eagles in the second half, holding them to five field goals, zero free throw attempts and 11 points. Senior Ryan Rudzinski scored seven points while Samenuk contributed six points. 

After starting the season with four-straight losses, Watterson rattled off six impressive wins in a row before falling on Friday. With two losses in the league, the Eagles will need to come out and play mistake free basketball when they take on rival DeSales at Otterbein next Friday. 

Let’s take a look at five keys to Ready’s victory.

1. Second half adjustments: Ready was in an offensive funk in the first half and seemed to have no answer for Rhett on the interior. The senior big man was carving up the Silver Knights defense in the second quarter in a game that looked like it was leaning toward Watterson’s favor. Ready slammed the door on Watterson’s preferred offensive attack in the second half, completely shutting down Rhett and holding the Eagles to 11 points in the entire half. That defensive performance was critical, as every single player on the Ready roster was dialed into their assignments and helped contribute to an excellent team showing. 

2. Charlie Russell is coming into his own: Due to his baseball talent, Russell has not been active on the AAU scene in basketball which has led to him being relatively underrated. He hasn’t gotten the same type of shine that Schaffer and Ruth have over the last few years, however, he is this team’s best offensive player and has been a superstar in some of the biggest moments. His ability at 6-foot-6 to make shots in the half court and terrorize teams in transition give Ready such a massive advantage, sa Russell is one of the elite rebounders that I’ve seen across the area. In order to win a state championship, you need to have a couple ‘guys’ and Russell is certainly one of those ‘guys’. 

3. Commitment to making everything difficult: I cannot stop raving about the Ready defensive performance. The Silver Knights were extremely physical, but disciplined, on the defensive end which helped them hold Watterson to five field goals without committing a single shooting foul. With Watterson unable to get points at the charity stripe and unable to get Rhett going, it seemingly shut them down and led to the Ready win. Luke Ruth was in particular amazing on the defensive end, as his on-ball defense, physicality and toughness gave the Silver Knights a huge advantage at the point of attack. 

4. Timely shooting: When I asked Ready alum Austin Burggoon, who played on last year’s district finalist team, what the Silver Knights needed to do to win at halftime, he was straight to the point: “Make a shot.” That’s what they did in the second half and those shots were extremely timely. Russell added two big threes in the middle quarters to keep the game close, but no shot was bigger than the one Germany buried from the left wing to end the third quarter. It seemed like Ready’s studs took turns making shots in the second half, as Schaffer’s back to back field goals in the fourth quarter gave Ready the cushion they needed to win the game. 

5. Maturity: The environment at Watterson had every characteristic of a big time rivalry game. Whether it was the massive home and away student sections, or the near capacity crowd or the number of college coaches lining the baseline, it had every feel of a highly important atmosphere between the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in Division II. To win games like that as a road team, you need to have maturity and that’s something this Ready team certainly has. They’ve ran the gauntlet with this program over the years and cannot get rattled, as they’ve seen damn near everything in their time together. Going 10-0 through a tough schedule that included six road games and two neutral site games, Ready’s back half of the schedule is extremely friendly with only four true road games and the majority of their schedule at home on the west side, as the Silver Knights are the only CCL member located on the other side of State Route 315. Everything is in front of this team, as they will need to stay connected and focused on each game at a time to reach the goals they have established for themselves. 

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