Just like that, Chester's season was over.

With the flick of Troy Hockaday's right wrist (pictured), La Salle took its first lead of the game Sunday - with four seconds to go - and topped Chester, 42-41, in an opening-round contest in the PIAA Class AAAA bracket. The Clippers suffered their first, first-round exit from states since 2004.

Hockaday, who was wildly inconsistent, shot 4-for-14 in the contest. Three of those buckets, resulting in 8 of his 13 points, came in the final 4:33 of the game. Hockaday almost single-handedly whittled away Chester's nine-point lead.

Here's what some had to say afterward:
SENIOR FORWARD RONELL WILLIAMS
"It's a life-learning experience. I just have to prepare for the future and prevent this from happening again. ... They're going to be back next year. Chester's going to be back."

SENIOR GUARD LAQUAN ROBINSON
“What I'll remember about this year is the young guys, and playing for them. Hopefully they can have a better season than we had."

JUNIOR GUARD MAURICE NELSON
“I tried to get the ball up the court as fast as possible and I saw Laquan, so I got it to him. And he got off a good shot. He just missed it. It hurts more than a normal loss.

“(Hockaday) wasn't making those shots. He was taking it to the basket the whole game. He just made a good shot there at the end.

“We talked about that, getting back here. It's a young team, that's all. We took our bumps and bruises all season. It was a roller coaster. We have to play some summer league games, some AAU ball, get back in the gym and get over this."

COACH LARRY YARBRAY
“I wasn't surprised with (Hockaday's) shot. I'm just surprised it went in.

“We had a lot of youth, and with it comes a lot of problems. You're trying to get them to play your style. Most of them are used to playing an AAU style. As far as their knowledge, we had to put a lot of time in to get them to understand. When we execute, good things happen. We get layups, uncontested layups. We get jumpers. When they play for their self, that's a problem. They just want to stand around, not set your screen or play good team defense or help out on the backside or do this or that. It's one- or two-minute breakdowns at the wrong time."

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The Clippers graduate only two seniors from their 16-11 team - Laquan Robinson (pictured) and Ronell Williams. They played six sophomores and five freshmen this year. So, like Yarbray and Nelson said, Chester will be back next winter.

The torrential winds and three-inch rainfall Saturday forced power outages across Radnor Township. They left Archbishop Carroll's gym in the dark.

And they left Chester without a game.

The Clippers' PIAA Class AAAA first-round meeting with La Salle at Carroll was postponed because of the power outage. The prior game - a Class AA matchup - was stopped in the third quarter and will be resumed tonight at Archbishop Wood.

What does this mean for Chester?

The District One eight seed will take on La Salle Sunday at 3 p.m. at Norristown. For more on the rescheduled game, check out the Sunday edition of the Daily Times.

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Elsewhere in Delco hoops:
Penn Wood knocked off Penn Manor, 76-57, and Penncrest's season came to a close in a 47-46 loss to Bethlehem Liberty.

The PIAA playoff brackets were released Sunday night. Some of Delaware County's five boys teams have brief drives; others, well, aren't so lucky.

Here's the breakdown...

PIAA CLASS AAA - FRIDAY
***Springfield (18-8) vs. Murrell Dobbins (16-8)
At South Philadelphia High, 6 p.m.
What to know: The Cougars, District One's runnerup, probably has a better draw against their opponent from the Public League than district-champ HGP. Yeah, about that...

***Archbishop Carroll (22-4) vs. Holy Ghost Prep (24-3)
At Norristown High, 8 p.m.
What to know: The Firebirds, who won the District One crown, were rewarded with a first-round draw against the reigning state-champion Patriots. Fair? No. But it is what it is.

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PIAA CLASS AAAA - SATURDAY
***Penn Wood (23-3) vs. Penn Manor (17-10)
At Norristown High, 3:30 p.m.
What to know: The newly-crowned District One champion Patriots knocked off the Comets, of District Three, in the first round of states a year ago. Probably enough said.

***Penncrest (24-5) vs. Bethlehem Liberty (22-5)
At Freedom High, Bethlehem, 4:30 p.m.
What to know: The Central League champion Lions have a 90-minute drive that covers 70-plus miles for this game. Liberty has a three-mile drive that takes eight minutes. Fair? No. But it is what it is. (See above.)

***Chester (16-10) vs. La Salle (19-5)
At Archbishop Carroll High, 4:30
What to know: The Clippers are in the unfavorable spot of losing three straight heading into states; meanwhile, the Explorers won a hotly-contested District 12 title game. It seems like the teams are going in opposite directions.

Friday night, Penn Wood put the finishing touches on its first District One Class AAAA championship in 18 years ... and the Daily Times was all over it. (Game story and column can be found here.)

The Times was on the baseline, too, with staff photographer Bob Gurecki nabbing some shots of the action:
Penn Wood reserve forward Jeff Kyem pulls down a rebound in front of Plymouth-Whitemarsh's C.J. Aiken in the first half.

Shawn Oakman (center) embraces Aaron Brown (left) and Will Brown (right) in the moments following the Patriots' upset of the Colonials.

Reserve guard Jerry Price (No. 1) rushes to the court after the buzzer to meet Will Brown and Aaron Brown (back) following the Patriots' first district championship victory since 1992.

AROUND THE STATE
In a major upset, Reading dispatched Hempfield, 54-46, Saturday in the District Three Class AAAA title game. Hempfield, the top seed, had gone 27-0 en route to the title game.

What that does is make Penn Wood's road to a repeat as state champion a little more bumpy, with Reading winning and going to the West side of the PIAA bracket. The weekend is long, so let's see how the rest of the bracket shakes out before we reach any conclusions.

AROUND THE COUNTY
In the District One Class AAAA seventh-place game. Penncrest toppled Chester, 56-53, at West Chester East High School. The Lions' Rodney Duncan went off for 31 points, a career high. The Clippers trailed by 10 with two minutes to go before closing the gap. According to Penncrest coach Mike Doyle, Duncan's point tally is the best for any Lion in more than eight years.

When I attend games, I don't like to sit at the scorer's table. Well, I do. But it's not my first choice. And especially not at a gym in which I've never seen a game.

So when I found a spot at Council Rock North Tuesday behind the Chester bench, I took it. In case you didn't get today's paper, the Chester backcourt of Laquan Robinson and Maurice Nelson (pictured) tore it up in the Clippers' win. Here's what I saw and heard from my vantage point:

TV timeout? At Rock North, there was a huge projection screen set up in the far right corner of the gym – sort of like a closed-circuit television broadcast of the game. But the opening tip was delayed for 60 seconds until technical difficulties had been ironed out and the refs had gotten a thumbs-up from the staff at Rock North. So, in a high school game, we had a TV timeout. … Good grief.

“Call it both ways.” Late in the second quarter, Council Rock North's John Raymon was whistled for a personal foul, the Indians' second of the half. A fan of the home team shouted toward the court, “Hey, ref, call it both ways.” … to which Chester assistant coach Keddy Harris shouted back, “Yeah, that's right – call it both ways.” By the time Rock North got its second foul, Chester already had seven.

Just in awe. At halftime, the Rock North cheerleaders did their little song and dance … then they waited on the court to watch the Chester High cheerleaders. Standing there, hands on their waist, they applauded the Clippers' crew after their in-unison splits. And the home-fan-heavy crowd gave the visiting cheerleaders a greater applause than its own squad.

BY THE NUMBERS
22 … turnovers by Council Rock North
15 … Chester's biggest lead, at 32-17 with more than 12 minutes remaining
9 … missed free throws by Chester
4 … first-quarter 3-pointers by Chester's Nelson
2 … offensive rebounds and subsequent putbacks by Chester's Ronnell Williams at the second- and third-quarter buzzers, effectively breaking the Indians' will

There's something about Chester freshman Rondae Jefferson that looks awfully familiar.

He's agile and quick, hits the boards hard and can score from anywhere inside the 3-point line. Sound familiar? It sounds like a description of Jefferson's older brother, Rahlir, who was an All-Delco last season.

The elder Jefferson, enjoying a strong freshman season with 17th-ranked Temple, said his younger brother has the potential to be better than him

“He's playing well. He hit a couple of jumpers,” Rahlir Jefferson said, after the Clippers' 57-40 loss to Penn Wood last Thursday. “He's still getting used to the movement in his leg, from when he was injured. Once that gets healed, he'll be good. He'll be better than me. I'm the big brother. I know. I just watch. I can see it.”

“He tells me that sometimes,” said Rondae Jefferson. “I don't know. His work ethic is better than mine, but I just give all of my heart every chance I get. I just twisted my ankle before the game. All I could do was lace up the sneakers and give it my all.”

Rondae Jefferson is averaging five points per game for the Clippers, playing in only three of their games because of a preseason leg injury. Already, Chester coach Larry Yarbray can see similarities in the brothers' play.

“At this stage, as far as talent with him being a freshman, he's got more than what Rahlir had,” Yarbray said. “Rahlir's work ethic got better over the years once his confidence got up. In terms of confidence, Rondae already has that.

“He says stuff like, 'Coach, I'm going to get you a foul shot.' I trust his abilities to a certain extent. If you saw it, in the heat of the battle tonight, he pulled the whole team together. He's a leader. He believes in himself already. Not a lot of guys have that, which is amazing because some of them have played for three years. If he hadn't gone down in the beginning of the year, those (seven) losses we have, we might only have three of them.”

Here's an up-close look at the Chester/Penn Wood game:
Early in the second quarter and with the game's outcome still in doubt, Penn Wood junior forward Aaron Brown (pictured) was whistled for a technical foul. The call was questionable, causing spectators and reporters, alike, to scratch their heads.

Brown is not an overly aggressive player. And players from both sides were jawing. Turns out he was whistled for running into his teammate, Shawn Oakman, which had to have been perceived as a sign of boasting, because there was no blatant contact between players from opposing teams.

"They all talk (trash) and any kind of bump would be seen as a form of aggression," Penn Wood coach Clyde Jones said. "Aaron is always emotional. But I know his emotions are going to lead to production."

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BY THE NUMBERS
10-11: Chester's proficiency at the free-throw line, a 91-percent clip.
19-34: Penn Wood's proficiency at the free-throw line, a 55-percent clip.
37-21: Penn Wood's rebounding advantage.
1: Technical foul, against Penn Wood's Aaron Brown.
3:28: Time it took Chester to get on the board.
4: Points scored by Will Brown during a dynamic second-quarter play. He hit a 3-pointer from the right side of the arc and, after sustaining a foul by Chester's Laquan Robinson, made the subsequent free throw.

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The arrangement to bring the first meeting of the season between these two Pennsylvania titans to Saint Joseph's University was the product of internal connections. Penn Wood alumnus Rap Curry, also the Patriots' athletic director, played a fruitful college career on Hawk Hill. So did Jameer Nelson, whose younger brother, Maurice Nelson, plays for Chester.

The younger Nelson, who had 17 points, was playing on the floor of Hagan Arena - formerly the Fieldhouse - for the first time in his life. And hanging about the court, in the rafters, is a banner bearing his brother's No. 14 and his likeness.

"I didn't even look up there today," Mo Nelson said. "I have in the past. Not today."

PHOTO BY DAILY TIMES' PHOTOGRAPHER BOB GURECKI

Today, the Daily Times is at Hagan Arena at Saint Joseph's University. Rather, we're bringing you to Hagan Arena.

The first meeting between longtime Del Val League rivals Penn Wood and Chester will be written about, photographed and video-taped for your sporting pleasure. Check back throughout the night for the latest, pick up a copy of Monday's Daily Times for the print coverage, and visit delcotimes.com for some video and audio coverage of the game.

It's sure to be a good one.

HALFTIME UPDATE: Penn Wood 39, Chester 24 -- The Patriots took an 8-0 lead only 80 seconds into the game. Will Brown has 17 points, Shawn Oakman has seven rebounds and three blocks and Dequan Pelzer has five rebounds and three steals for Penn Wood. Chester's Mo Nelson has 10 points despite missing all of the first quarter for an unspecified reason.

FINAL: Penn Wood 66, Chester 48 -- Pick up Monday's Daily Times for the complete breakdown...

Chester's loss Saturday at the Jameer Nelson Classic threw up a couple red flags, but not because the Clippers lost at the tournament bearing the name of one of their most famous alums.

Losing 65-46 to Plymouth Whitemarsh was the Clippers' first loss of 19 or more points against a District One foe in 13 seasons. Not since Chester lost to Glen Mills, 71-49, on Jan. 9, 1997, had the Clippers been completely dominated by a team within their own district.

Of course, the Clippers are not perfect. They've lost a number of games over the years. But most of them have been in national tournaments to ranked teams from other states, or to familiar foes from the Catholic League, Public League or Inter-Academic League.

Consider the following: Since that 22-point loss to The Mills in January 1997, the Clippers have...
...played 403 total games.
...gone 59-5 in the District One playoffs.
...won seven District One Class AAAA titles.
...gone 33-10 in the PIAA playoffs.
...advanced to the PIAA Final Four seven times.
...claimed three PIAA Class AAAA titles.
...had four Daily Times' Players of the Year (2000 Nelson, '03 Shaheer McBride, '06 Darrin Govens, '08 Karon Burton).
...lost just twice by double-digits to a District One opponent (Council Rock 67, Chester 51 - Feb. 10, 2001, and last Saturday).

It took some research to find all of this, but it was well worth it ... because the Clippers' loss to Plymouth Whitemarsh was more than just a loss. It was one for the ages.

Jameer Nelson shouldn't surprise anyone by now. You know what to expect from the Chester High and Saint Joseph's University product.

Except when speaking to him on the phone.

The 2000 Daily Times Player of the Year, Nelson called me this week to preview the Jameer Nelson/Pete Nelson Classic, the annual holiday round-robin tournament that features Delco's and Southeastern Pennsylvania's finest boys basketball teams. Of course, we talked other things, too --- like politics, food and holiday goodies.

Take a look:

Nelson, on supporting the burgeoning political career of former Chester coach Fred Pickett, who in November lost his campaign for Chester city council:
"I support him and everything he's doing - always. The one thing about Fred is he has a big heart. I don't get into politics all that much. I follow enough, but not too much. But politics is just like everything else - somebody's got to win and somebody's got to lose."

On coming home for the holidays:
"I never get a chance to. Fortunately, I'll be able to get most of my family down here to stay with me and my wife (Imani), probably around 10 or 12 people."

On his cooking preferences during the holidays:
"Believe it or not, I can cook. Basketball is so time consuming that I leave the cooking up to my wife and my mom most of the time. I can cook pretty much anything. My mom is the ultimate cook. My dad (Pete) was, too. Being in the NBA, it took years of not having anybody with you to learn how to cook. Nobody was there except me and my cousin, so you learn to fend for yourself."

On his dream Christmas gift:
"I'm not a guy that gets overwhelmed with gifts. I guess to help my family get down here to spend the holiday with us and visit with us is my gift."