By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

For the second time in a little over two weeks, West St. John has proved to be a thorn in St. Charles’ side – this time, a little bigger than the time before.

After the Rams emerged victorious over St. Charles in the final of the Riverside Holiday Classic on Dec. 22, the teams had a rematch on Tuesday at St. Charles.

This time, the result remained constant – West St. John pulled away late, a 70-66 winner in overtime. But nothing came easy to a Rams team that seemed finished with time winding down.

Things appeared bleak for the Rams with three minutes remaining, as West St. John trailed by 10 in a game St. Charles led throughout. But a tremendous run near the end of regulation tied the game, and improbably, a layup by the Rams’ Jessie Silas with 12 seconds remaining gave West St. John (8-7) a 60-58 lead.

But the Comets’ DeMarcus Bernard answered, drawing a foul. St. Charles (13-12) quickly forced a Rams turnover, and Bernard had a shot to win as time ran out, but could not convert.

In overtime, West St. John established a 66-60 lead, but St. Charles fought back to tie. But after a pair of Ram baskets gave WSJ a 70-66 lead, St. Charles’ Gabe Corchiani drew a foul while shooting a 3-pointer. He did not convert the foul shots, though, and West St. John held on.

“We kept scrapping,” said West St. John Coach Antoine Edwards. “There was never any give up in my players. Some things turned our way. Defensively, we played very well down the stretch.”

Said St. Charles Coach Jonathan Hernandez: “We didn’t take care of the ball or make our free throws down the stretch. The way we shot from the foul line, its amazing we were even in the game to force overtime.

“We’ve still got to start doing the little things consistently in order to win.”

The foul line did prove a major hindrance to the Comets – the team shot 8-25 from the stripe.

(See COMETS, Page 12A)

But while Hernandez said that his team executed their offense well throughout, the fourth quarter tempo shifted in West St. John’s favor.

“It became an up and down game,” said Hernandez. “Once you’re getting into the 60’s and 70’s on the scoreboard, it’s hard for us to compete. We want to keep it in the 30’s and 40’s.”

Silas and Blake Comminie each scored 14 to lead West St. John offensively. Dray Joseph added 10.

For St. Charles, Bernard led the way with 16. Vincent Rollo scored 13. Shedrick Usand-Burton and Zach Goodwin each added 12.

St. Charles resumes play today at the Riverside Hall of Fame Classic. Both the Comets and Rams will begin district play on Tuesday. The Rams will travel to East Iberville, while the Comets go to Lutcher.