Even the astute minds of the Daily Times do not hold the answers to every question. The one currently driving us batty pertains to District One's 2,000-point scorers.

When (not if) Pennsbury's Dalton Pepper (pictured) scores four points tonight at Neshaminy, he will become the eighth player in District One to eclipse the 2,000-point mark for his career. Former Daily Times basketball writer Terry Toohey and I came up with seven of them:

• Wayne Keys (Bristol)
• Kobe Bryant (Lower Merion)
• Tommy Hauer (Sun Valley)
• Dan Geriot (Springfield)
• Lamont Ferrell (Yeadon/Penn Wood)
• Tyrone Lewis (Harry S Truman)
• Pepper (Pennsbury)

Who is the eighth? I'm thinking it's Hatboro-Horsham's Matt Carroll, but I'm not 100-percent sure. But ... the first person to e-mail the answer and proof -- cvito@delcotimes.com -- or post it here on the blog gets a prize*. (NOTE: By "prize", I mean I'm thinking a guest entry on Gettin' Schooled during playoff time. Sound fair?)

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DEL VAL CO-CHAMPS: With Penn Wood's win over Interboro Thursday and Chester's victory over Academy Park, the Patriots and the Clippers finished in a dead heat atop the Del Val League standings. Both teams have 9-1 records, with their only losses coming against one another.

It's the first time in 11 seasons that a team other than Chester has earned a share of the Del Val championship. It's safe to say Chester would have liked to have kept its streak an undisputed league-title run. But something tells me those two will settle things in the District One or PIAA playoffs.

Episcopal Academy senior Cory Goodman's situation is not what you would call 'made in the shade.'

As a freshman, he had to watch from the bench as Gerald Henderson and Wayne Ellington stole the spotlight. A year later, he tore up his knee and required surgery. As a junior, he reclaimed his game. But, as a senior, he isn't EA's leading scorer.

Go figure. Read all about Goodman's story in this week's boys basketball notebook, which also features an item on the likelihood of there being a Central League Championship playoff tournament at the conclusion of the regular season.

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A REMINDER
Saturday is the 10th annual Kobe Bryant Play-By-Play Classic, and there are four teams playing some meaningful games at Norristown High School.

• Arch. Carroll vs. Norristown, 2 p.m.: Let's see what the No. 3 team in the Super 7 is all about against the PIAA Class AAAA runner-up.
• Chester vs. Academy of New Church, 4 p.m.: The Clippers should be able to handle ANC.
• Monsignor Bonner vs. Williamsport, 5:45 p.m.: The Friars should put up a fight against the Millionaires, a state finalist last year.
• Penn Wood vs. Lower Merion, 7:30: The game of the night pits the Patriots against the Aces in Penn Wood's last big test before Chester.

Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself. We're only two weeks into the boys basketball season and here I am blogging about in-season tournaments. Oh well. Sue me for being overly excited.

Here are a couple dates to keep your eyes on, including one that bears the name of Lower Merion's finest:

THE 9th ANNUAL GIRLS PLAY-BY-PLAY CLASSIC
(Jan. 17, at Archbishop Carroll H.S.)
Mt. St. Joseph vs. Spring-Ford, 12 p.m.
Cardinal O'Hara vs. Trenton Catholic, 1:30
Archbishop Carroll vs. Notre Dame, 3

THE 10th ANNUAL KOBE BRYANT PLAY-BY-PLAY CLASSIC
(Jan. 24, at Norristown H.S.)
Msgr. Bonner vs. Williamsport, 12 p.m.
Arch. Carroll vs. Norristown, 1:45
Chester vs. Academy of the New Church, 4
Penn Wood vs. Lower Merion, 5:45

THE 10th ANNUAL BOARDWALK CLASSIC
(Dec. 26 - 31, at the Wildwood Convention Center)
There aren't any Delaware County teams involved, but if the mood should strike you, you could make the 2-hour drive to see Lijah Thompson, the Monsignor Bonner transfer who is tearing it up for Communications Tech.

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.