Chester 46-Okawville 45 to improve to 3-4 overall and 1-1 in Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division
By Jim Beers
CHESTER – The Chester YellowJackets hosted the Okawville Rockets Friday December 12 in their first home conference game of the season. Chester came into the game with an overall record of 2-4 and a Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division record of 0-1. Okawville is typically a very competitive team.
The Jackets lost their first two games of the season, 42-27 vs Anna Jonesboro in the season opener, and 73-50 at Pinckneyville.
The next week the Jackets traveled to DuQuoin to compete in the 2025 DuQuoin Tournament. CHS lost a close one, 51-49 against Herrin, but then won their last two games, 64-56 against Carmi, and 75-71 in overtime against Cairo, to finish in 5th Place.
Tuesday December 9 Chester opened Week 3 at home hosting Carlyle in the first conference game of the season. The Jackets battled the Indians in front of a YellowJacket fan base, losing a close one, 53-47.
The Okawville game Friday December 12, was Game 2 of Week 3 and was Game 2 of a 3-game home stand series. Chester trailed, 12-8 after one quarter of play. Tallen James carried the Jackets with a trey and duce for five points. TaShawn Palacio added two points to round out the 8-point quarter.
The entire first quarter was a see-saw battle with each time leading back-and forth, never by more than one or two points until the final minute when the Rockets hit a trey to take a 4-point lead, 12-8 at the buzzer.
The back-and forth battle continued throughout the second quarter. Okawville scored right away to take a six-point lead, 14-8, at the 7:28 mark. Chester answered with back-to-back 3-pointers by Tallen James to tie the game, 14-14 on that 6-point run at 4:50.
Okawville’s Ryker Obermeier then hit three free throws in-a-row to take a 17-14 lead at 3:37. Tallen James tied the game, 17-17, with his third 3-pointer of the night at the 3:11 mark. Chester’s TaShawn Palacio added a bucket to give Chester the lead, 19-17 with 2:36 left in the half. That was the 9th lead change of the game!
Okawville then answered with a 5-0 run to re-take the lead, 22-19, at the 1:40 mark. The YellowJackets used the final 1:40 to complete a 5-0 run to end the half with a two-point lead, 24-22. In that five-point run, TaShawn Palacio made back-to-back free throws and Trey McCartney drained a trey the buzzer to end the half!
CHS used four 3-pointers (James 3; & Danny Worley 1), one 2-pointer (TaShawn Palacio), and perfect 2-for-2 free throw shooting (TaShawn Palacio) to take the lead in the second quarter.
The 3rd Quarter was fast-and-furious once again and featured five lead changes and two ties. Okawville tied the game 24-24 to start things off. CHS regained the lead, 26-24, on a TaShawn Palacio trip to the hoop (6:08).
An Okawville trey gave the Rockets a one point lead, 27-26 at the 5:00 mark. Palacio struck again with another strong move through the lane to re-take the Chester lead, 28-27, (4:25). Okawville’s Braylen Turner drained a three ball at 3:08 to take back an Okawville lead, 30-28.
About 30 seconds later, Tallen James hit his 5th 3-pointer of the game to re-take the Chester lead by one point, 31-30 (2:35). Okawville’s Ayden Foley knocked down a free throw at the 2:27 mark, to tie the game AGAIN, 31-31. With little time on the clock, TaShawn Palacio made another strong move to the hoop to extend Chester’s lead to two points, 33-31, to close out the 3rd Quarter.
In the opening half of the 4th Quarter Okawville and Chester would each re-take the lead, Okawville (35-33 at 6:28) and Chester (37-35 at 4:17). The Jackets would then use a 6-2 run to take a four point lead, 43-37, with just 44 seconds left to play.
Nine seconds later, however, Okawville’s Kaden Buehler, made things very interesting when he drained a 3-pointer to get the Rockets within three points, 43-40 (35.4 seconds remaining).
Chester would use nine free throws down the stretch to help seal the game. Tallen James was 4-for-4 (100%), and TaShawn Palacio was 5-for-6 (83%). Altogether, in the 4th Quarter Chester made 9-of-14 free throws (64%).
The Jackets led, 46-42, right up to the end, but Okawville popped a trey at the buzzer to get within one point, 46-45. Chester won the game, 46-45.
Chester’s Tallen James (10) a 6’0 junior guard, led the YellowJackets in scoring with 21 points in the 46-45 win over the Okawville Rockets Friday December 12. Jim Beers Photo
TaShawn Palacio, a 6’1 junior forward, scored 18 points Friday December in the YellowJacket’s 46-45 win over Okawville. Jim Beers Photo
is Players, Cheerleaders and fans stand at attention for the playing of the National Anthem, “The Star Spangled Banner” at the start of the Chester vs Okawville game Friday December 12, 2025. The CHS Pep Band performed the Anthem under the direction of Steve Colonel, CHS Band Director
The Chester High School Boys’ Basketball Team celebrate their 46-45 win over the Okawville Rockets Friday December 12. It is tradition for the boys to run past the Chester “HIVE” cheer section after games to say thank you for the support given in the game. Jim Beers Photo
Chester’s TaShawn Palacio (21) jumps ball against Okawville’s Ayden Foley (33) in the season home Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division game Friday December 12. The Jackets won, 46-45, and got their first conference win of the 2025-26 season. Jim Beers Photo