It's official: Penn Wood and Norristown will square off Friday night for the District One Class AAAA championship.

Penn Wood knocked off Conestoga, 62-53, in the opener of a district semifinal doubleheader at Temple's Liacouras Center. Norristown bested Pennsbury, 60-53, in the nightcap. They will play Friday night at Villanova's Pavilion in a 9 p.m. tipoff.

The Patriots are in the district final for the first time since 1992, when they won their first and only district title. The Eagles is back in the final after dropping last year's title game against Chester.

Jarrell Gardner (pictured) and Lorenzo Christmas were big for Norristown, combining for 16 points. Khalif Wyatt led the way with 17 more.

Pick up a copy of Wednesday's Daily Times for more on the games.

(Photo by the Daily Local News)

Delaware County basketball fans should be familiar with this face. It's that of Temple-bound Norristown senior Khalif Wyatt, whose Eagles fell to Chester (twice) in the playoffs a year ago.

If Norristown is going to vanquish ghosts of playoffs passed, it's through Wyatt ... and a glitch in the District One Class AAAA power-points system.

Turns out Wyatt and the Eagles are the district-playoff bracket's No. 8 seed - and not the ninth, as originally seeded. So for Tuesday's second-round tilt with West Chester Rustin (the initial No. 8 seed) will be played at Norristown's joint.

All of that make sense?

You'd think that a proven mathematical system would not fail a team, but this time it did. Fortunately, Norristown lived to joke about it. But, for a second, cater to the thought of No. 9 Norristown being upset by the 25 seed when, all along, they should have been playing the 24 seed. There would have been some hell to pay.

Here's the rest of the bracket, should there be any hang-ups.

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There are no humongous modifications to this week's edition of the PIAA state polls.

Chester (No. 2) and Penn Wood (No. 3) are still top dogs in the Class AAAA poll, ranked by the Patriot-News of Harrisburg. Glen Mills - in my opinion - has yet to get the credit it deserves, and comes in under the 'Honorable Mention' label.

In Class AAA, Archbishop Carroll holds steady at No. 5. A good showing in Wednesday's Catholic League semifinal - and subsequent championship game - could alter that.

The entire rankings can be found here.

Just arrived at Penn State's Bryce Jordan Center, where the Chester Clippers will take on the Norristown Eagles in a short while.

Here's what you need to know about tonight's game:
1 ... Norristown is the owner of just one state title, having won it all in 1948.
2 ... Number of cable networks televising the game (CN8 and PCN).
4 ... Chester senior starters hoping their last game in orange and black in a win.
6 ... Number of state championship banners possibly hanging in Chester's gym after tonight.
8 ... Tip off time. Make sure to have the popcorn ready and a spot reserved on your couch.
25 ... Win percent of Norristown in its four title-game appearances.
36 ... Win percent of Chester in its 14 title-game appearances.

Check back to Gettin' Schooled throughout the night for updates from the Bryce Jordan Center.

If Chester beats Norristown today for the PIAA Class AAAA state title, the Clippers will be remembered as the best team in school history. Not my words, but those of former Daily Times' boys basketball writer Rob Knox. Here's his reasoning:

Lockdown defense. "Forget the talent and the Division I prospects," he said. "What seperates this Chester squad from the others is its ability to play lockdown defense when the offense isn’t clicking. This is the Clippers’ best defensive squad in quite some time."

Better competition. "Think about this: if Chester wins Saturday, it would have defeated a pair of teams (Pennsbury and Norristown) in its last two games with a combined 62 victories," Knox said. "That’s impressive. The 2000 team didn’t do that and the 2005 team didn’t do that, either."

In the end, Knox said, you'll have to judge for yourself.

"Those (past) teams were great in their own right, but considering the schedule Chester played ... it’s hard to argue against this Chester squad being the greatest of the modern era."

ABOUT TODAY'S GAME
If you're heading to State College today, be sure to pick up a copy of the Daily Times. It's loaded with useful information about tonight's game. It features updated rosters and schedules from both teams; their histories in the state title game; and plenty of insight. Safe travels and see you in Happy Valley.

No one wants to give Norristown any love.

The Eagles, who reeled off 28 wins in a row to start their season, have been dealing with that stiff reality all season.

Is it because they played a soft nonleague schedule? Is it because their Suburban One League Continental Conference foes posted a combined win percentage of .486?

Maybe, but Norristown coach Mike Evans (pictured, on the bench, with assistant Binky Johnson in the forefront) wants his team to get its dues.

"It's not like we go on what outsiders say," Evans said Friday from State College. "We don't listen because it's mostly negative stuff they're saying. We just think we're a better team than a lot of people say. We don't get the credit that being 32-1 deserves."

Vying for their first state title in 60 years, the Eagles take on Chester Saturday for all the marbles. Playing the Clippers is an opportunity the Eagles welcome, Evans said.

"It's going to come down to who executes," Evans said. "That said, I think we have a chance."

The Chester Clippers successfully defended their string of District One Class AAAA championships Sunday to take home their seventh in a row.

The Clippers (28-1) handed Norristown (28-1) its first loss of the season in a 61-47 decision at Villanova's Pavilion.

Karon Burton finished with team highs of 20 points and 7 assists while Nasir Robinson (pictured) had 18 points and 12 rebounds. The senior duo connected on three alley-oop dunks in the win.

In the PIAA Class AAAA state playoff bracket, Chester will take on Williamsport (19-8), the second seed out of District Two, in the first round. That game will be played next Saturday at 2:30 p.m. at Norristown High School.

FOR MORE ON THE GAME...
...pick up a copy of Monday's Daily Times. Included will be a game story; a sidebar on Burton's rebound from a sloppy first quarter; a column by Terry Toohey on Chester coach Fred Pickett; and another sidebar by Chuck Smith on Norristown's take on the Clippers.

I spoke this morning with Chester coach Fred Pickett, who confirmed that tonight's District One Class AAAA championship game is postponed due to inclement weather.

The game - between No. 1 Chester and No. 2 Norristown - will be played Sunday at 4 p.m. at Villanova's Pavilion.

The area's snowfall coupled with the forecast of an ice storm to follow caused the cancelation of classes at Chester and Norristown, which forced the postponement of tonight's game.

Local basketball fans hoping to see Chester further its District One dominance, you better keep your fingers crossed and hope we don't see any snow plows.

I spoke with District One chairman Bob Ruoff, who assured me postponing Friday's district title game would only cause more headaches. Here's how everything at Villanova's Pavilion shakes out should Friday's game get moved back:

• Saturday won't work. Five district title games are already scheduled.
• Sunday is the most viable option. Christian schools could object, however.
• Monday is out of the question. A Villanova-Marquette game at the Wachovia Center limits the game crew at the Pavilion.
• Tuesday is even worse. Night school classes limit available security and parking spots.

With the state playoffs beginning a week from today, Ruoff said something's got to give. "We could always let them play Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, or something like that," he said. "While the rest of the state would be filling in their district's blanks on the state bracket, we would just have to do that later on." We should have a decision on tonight's games by 12 noon Friday. So, like I said, keep your fingers crossed.

MORE ON CHESTER/NORRISTOWN
Pick up a copy of Friday's Daily Times for all the details about the game tonight (or tomorrow ... or the next day). Among the stuff you'll find inside: a feature story previewing the game, a capsule running down the ins and outs of both teams and the probable starting lineups.