Who would have thought it possible?

Lower Merion, winners of 15 straight and 19 of 20, did the impossible Saturday night. The Aces knocked off the heavy favorite Conestoga, 46-41, to claim the Central League championship.

Lower Merion thwarted Conestoga's bid for consecutive league championships. The Pioneers shared the 2007-08 title with Ridley a year ago.

The usual suspects - Richmond signee Greg Robbins (pictured) and Harley Williamson - combined to score 19 points and were largely outshined by teammate Alon Seltzer's 18 for the Aces (20-4). The Pioneers (22-2) were done in by the 2-spot they put up in the third quarter.

It's safe to say everyone expected Conestoga, which won its first 20 games of the year, to claim the title. But now the Pioneers back into the District One Class AAAA playoffs having lost two of their last four games --- both to the Aces.

OK, so Conestoga losing to Lower Merion assured us that there will be - for the first time in the league's history - a playoff to determine the Central League champion. Here's what I know so far:

TEAMS INVOLVED: Conestoga, Lower Merion, Penncrest and Upper Darby.

SEEDS: Conestoga is the No. 1 seed and Lower Merion is No. 2. Those cannot change. Penncrest is third in the standings, followed by Upper Darby. The Royals (14-8, 12-4) put pressure on the Lions (17-4, 11-4), who were inactive Tuesday, by defeating Ridley in their season finale. Penncrest plays Marple Newtown Wednesday night to determine final seeding.

LOCATIONS: Friday night's games will be held at the gyms of the higher seeds, so Conestoga and Lower Merion will host. Lower Merion's game will be played at Bala Cynwyd Middle School. Saturday's championship will be at Ridley.

TIMES: Conestoga's first-round game is set for 7 p.m. Lower Merion's opener will tip off at 7:30 p.m. And the title game will start at 7 p.m. Saturday.

PRE-SALE TICKETS: Only Lower Merion will sell tickets beforehand, as Bala Cynwyd Middle School does not have as many seats as normal high school gyms.

QUESTIONS: Springfield athletic director and Central League boys basketball chair Glenn Mallon asks that all further questions be addressed by the respective schools' athletic departments.

David has slain Goliath.

OK, that's a little extreme ... but Lower Merion knocked off previously unbeaten Conestoga Monday night, 46-44, to force the first-ever Central League playoff tournament.

Greg Robbins and Harley Williamson scored 14 and 13 points, respectively, for the Aces (17-4, 14-2), who have won 12 in a row after losing uncharacteristically three of their first four games of the season. Jake Cohen was held to nine points as the Pioneers (20-1, 14-1) lost for the first time all year.

What does this mean?

Well, now the Central League will hold a four-team playoff tournament to determine its league champion. The first-round games will be held Thursday night at the sites of the higher seeds and the title game will be held Saturday night at Ridley High School.

At this moment, this is how the semifinal matchups shake out:

• No. 3 Penncrest (17-4, 12-4) at No. 2 Lower Merion (17-4, 14-2)
• No. 4 Upper Darby (13-6, 11-4) at No. 1 Conestoga (20-1, 14-1)

Stay close to the Daily Times for more on the Central League tournament.

As of Wednesday night, there is only one undefeated team in the Central League - and that's Conestoga.

Penncrest found out the hard way - by losing its own perfect season - just how good Conestoga is. It appears, to me at least, that the Pioneers are deserving of their No. 4 ranking in the latest state Class AAAA poll.

Here's why:
1. They traveled more than 3,000 miles to a holiday tournament in San Diego, where they beat three teams handily, including one nationally ranked (and previously unbeaten) team.

2. They are 7-0 in the Central, and have beaten all takers by an average of 18.3 points per contest.

3. They knocked off Penncrest, which looked untouchable after taking care of business against all six of its Central opponents prior to Wednesday.

Oh yeah, and the Pioneers (12-0, 7-0) have Jake Cohen (pictured), a 6-10 senior forward who has committed to Davidson.

It's not just Cohen though.

"It's a credit to the players. They've all bought in to what we're trying to do," said Conestoga coach Mike Troy. "...I'm happy with how Jake has progressed, but I'm happy with how all the kids have progressed.

"Mike (D'Angelo) played in a tremendous amount of pain tonight and gave us a great effort. ... Whether it's Jake, or Matt (O'Hara) making a decision, or Zack (Shapiro) getting a shot, or Doug (Jakiela) getting a board, it's been tremendous this season."

The Pioneers look as balanced as any team I've seen this season. They're a team to keep your eyes on for the rest of the year, for sure.

Read more about the game in Thursday's Daily Times.

After Tuesday night, there will still be two unbeaten teams in the Central League.

The Penncrest (10-0) at Conestoga (11-0) game that was scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Tuesday has been cancelled, according to Penncrest coach Mike Doyle. The Conestoga Athletic office said it was a "preemptive move" because of the ice storm headed our way.

The game is the only meeting this season between the teams, which are in the Central League's small- and large-school "divisions" (enrollment-based groupings used for scheduling purposes). Doyle said the game has been moved to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

For more information on the game and for future rescheduling of it, fans are urged to call Conestoga's sports hotline at 610.240.1042.

You heard it here first, folks.

Just got back in from the Kobe Bryant Classic at Villanova's Pavilion. Here are a couple things I saw that I couldn't fit into my stories:

• The Catholic League playoffs are right around the corner, so a couple role players from Delco's CL teams made sure they got one last look at Roman Catholic. Archbishop Carroll's D.J. Irving and Monsignor Bonner's Lijah Thompson and Henry Smith were on hand to watch the Cahillites.


• American Christian's Tyreke Evans returned to the Pavilion following his afternoon game for one of the nightcaps - Roman vs. Chester. He tried to slip in a back door before a security guard tried to squelch that plan. That is, until she recognized who Evans was. No one likes to give out special treatment. But in this case, the security guard felt she had to oblige.


• Chester's Russell Johnson sat out the Clippers' 83-73 win over Roman Catholic. Johnson was dressed in street clothes on the Chester bench for Friday's game, too. His status was not immediately known.


• Congrats to Conestoga and Ridley, which clinched a co-championship in the Central League with wins Saturday. Both teams will enter the District One Class AAAA tournament with identical 20-4, 15-3 records.

Something interesting is brewing in the Central League. No, Kobe Bryant is not coming back to play with Lower Merion for the stretch run, but his Aces and two other teams entered the week in contention for the regular-season title (and another just out of reach). Here's how it all shakes out:

1. Ridley (13-2 in league play) is 2-0 vs. Conestoga, 1-0 vs. Upper Darby and 0-1 vs. Lower Merion. Games remaining: 3. Key game: Saturday vs. Lower Merion. If the Green Raiders lose the game, they also lose the title.

2. Conestoga (12-3 in league play) is 2-0 vs. Lower Merion, 1-1 vs. Upper Darby and 0-2 vs. Ridley. Games remaining: 3. Key game: None. All three are against sub-.500 squads, but the Pioneers own the second-place tiebreaker over Lower Merion.

3. Lower Merion (12-3 in league play) is 1-0 vs. Ridley, 1-1 vs. Upper Darby and 0-2 vs. Conestoga. Games remaining: 3. Key game: Saturday vs. Ridley. The Aces will ascend to No. 1 with a win. Lose, and they're mired in third place.

4. Upper Darby is 9-6 in league play and worth mentioning because of its respectable record against all three of these teams. The Royals are 1-1 vs. Lower Merion, 1-1 vs. Conestoga and 0-1 vs. Ridley.

Now we play the waiting game.