The first one is in the books.

While we have to wait until Feb. 2 for the rematch, Chester's 69-43 dismantling of Penn Wood had a few wrinkles. Firstly, it wasn't nearly as bad as the final score would indicate. But there's much more to the game than just the final score. Have a look:

OBSERVATIONS
****Chester officials gave me a reason for why junior Rondae Jefferson (pictured, above) missed last Thursday night's game against Interboro. "He was dehydrated. He went to the hospital," I was told. Well, Jefferson didn't waste any more time. He's averaging 11 points in the three games since his return.
****Jefferson brought the crowd to its feet on three straight trips up the floor, with electric dunks. None was better than the one served up by Darius Robinson (pictured, left).
****Penn Wood's gym, always cramped, was especially tight with The Comcast Network's camera scaffolding - at midcourt and in the Southeast corner.
****Villanova coach Jay Wright, after noticing his likeness was on live television, winked into the camera. A rare night in which Jay was not livid.
****In case you didn't notice, Chester had new uniforms. I heard UnderArmour sent a shipment of the new gear - which included socks, shoes and everything they could slap their logo on - arrived just in time for Tuesday's game.
****After Tymier Butler swatted Penn Wood shots on successive possessions, a Chester fan exclaimed, "Not in our house. Wait, and not in your house either."
****How deep is Chester's varsity roster? At one point in the JV game that preceded the varsity tilt, a fan asked former Chester coach Fred Pickett why sophomore forward Diamonte Reason, who scored all 14 points in the JV Clips' 14-0 third-quarter swing, wasn't on varsity. Pickett's reply? "There's no room," he said.


QUOTABLES
"We know, to beat them, we have to take care of all our details. We gave up 21 offensive rebounds. … There’s no way for us to (win). We don’t score enough to counter that. We had 17 rebounds for the game. I saw my stats. You don’t rebound, you’re not going to beat them."
---Penn Wood coach Clyde Jones

“We’ve been coming out (slowly) the last couple games. That means we’ve got to get better. We’ve got some work."
---Chester senior Erikk Wright of his 14-0 team

“It feels real good to blow them out like that. They’re the only team people come to see when we play and all that."
---Chester senior Richard Granberry, pictured

“In our league you’ve got to beat Penn Wood and Glen Mills. … Any team can beat any team, but we don’t want to be that team."
---Chester coach Larry Yarbray

FACES IN THE CROWD
For a game that permitted only 400 into the building, the usual suspects were there. Chester All-Delcos Maurice Nelson and Lamon Church from the 2010-11 PIAA Class AAAA championship team, were in the building. Penn Wood's Dequan Pelzer, from the 2008-09 PIAA title team, was there, as well. Villanova's Jay Wright, and Seton Hall assistant coach Shaheen Holloway also made a showing.

(Times staff photos / ROBERT J. GURECKI)

In case you haven't heard, we at the Daily Times have begun a Wednesday night Web show called "Live From The Newsroom." Our first two installments have handled hard-hitting news subjects.

Not this Wednesday.

Former Chester High coach Fred Pickett will join me in the Daily Times newsroom to discuss the boys basketball bracket in District One Class AAAA.

The show, which can be viewed through delcotimes.com, begins at 7 p.m. Be sure to check it out.

At the Daily Times' All-Delco banquet in June, at which his NBA All-Star half-brother was delivering the keynote speech, Maurice Nelson wore a look of resentment.

Maybe it was because Nelson was uncertain that he'd ever return to the banquet for a second year.

Nelson was a student in limbo. A junior athletically and academically (though he'd already spent four years in high school), Nelson lobbied for an extra year of PIAA eligibility this week ... and received it.

The Chester shooting guard traveled to District One's office in Norristown Wednesday - with his mother, Chester athletic director Randy Legette, former Clippers coach Fred Pickett and current coach Larry Yarbray - to make his case in an official hearing.

Nelson became the second Chester boys basketball player in the last four years to appeal for and receive another year of eligibility. Russell Johnson finished his career at Chester in 2007-08, when the Clippers went on to win a PIAA Class AAAA title.

Now Nelson, with one more year to go, has a chance to make it back to the All-Delco banquet. Though it doesn't get much more special than being celebrated as an All-Delco with your half-brother, Jameer Nelson, addressing the rest of the county's top athletes in the same night.

For more on Nelson's hearing, check out Friday's Daily Times.

Here's a closer look at Penn Wood's 57-40 win over Chester Thursday:

***LAUGH IT OFF. Clippers forward Ronnell Williams experienced the joy and ire of coach Larry Yarbray in one trip to the free throw line. When the sophomore banked in a foul shot, Yarbray laughed and smiled at his young big man. And when Williams clanked the next one, Yarbray screamed at him to get down the floor and defend.

***COLLEGE ROLL CALL. Three members of the nationally-ranked Temple Owls' rotation were at the Clip Joint. Chester All-Delco Rahlir Jefferson sat beside former Clippers coach Fred Pickett, while Scootie Randall and Ramone Moore (Jefferson's teammates with the No. 19 Owls) were seated in the row in front of him.

***1,000 POINT CLUB, PART I. Before the game, Chester honored Maurice Nelson, who scored his career 1,000th point Tuesday in a road game at Interboro. But Tyree Johnson got the best of Nelson. Johnson, who scored his 1,000th point in an earlier meeting with Chester, had the better game this time around, too. ...And he did so less than 24 hours after making his college commitment.

***SUPER 7 DISCUSSION. Speaking of Pickett, the longtime Clippers coach asked me why Chester had slipped to No. 4 in the latest Daily Times' Super 7. After giving my explanation, Pickett walked away. He wanted nothing of it. But he's a good sport. He came back a minute later, smiling. (Like any good coach, he knows not to take sports too seriously. That's the key.)

***1,000 POINT CLUB, PART II. One of Darby Township's finest was a referee Thursday. Derick Loury, who scored 1,137 points in his career with the Eagles, worked the game at the Clip Joint.

(Note: PHOTOS BY DAILY TIMES STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER BOB GURECKI. Check delcotimes.com Friday for video from the game.)

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."