Chester High's Rondae Jefferson is the 2011-12 Daily Times Player of the Year.

Jefferson averaged 12.1 points, 9.2 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 2.7 blocks and 2.6 steals per game for the Clippers (32-0), who won back-to-back PIAA Class AAAA titles and finished the season ranked No. 4 nationally by USA Today.

Three other notes on Jefferson: His 21 rebounds against Lower Merion in the District One Class AAAA championship established a school record. He totaled 14 double-doubles of points and rebounds. And he nearly had a quadruple-double in the regular-season finale, totaling 15 points, 15 rebounds, 10 assists and eight steals.

Rounding out the 2011-12 All-Delco team are: Chester senior forward Erikk Wright; Glen Mills senior center Raheem Harvey; Penn Wood senior guard Malcolm Richardson; Ridley senior Shawn Church; and Archbishop Carroll junior guard Yosef Yacob.

Barring breaking news and college commitments, this likely will be the final blog post here for a while. Check back regularly, just to be sure, and thanks for your consistent readership this season. It's been a fun one.

(Times staff photo / ERIC HARTLINE)

One down, two to go.

That's the task facing senior Malcolm Richardson (pictured) and Penn Wood, which has taken the circuitous route to a fifth-straight bid for the state tournament.

The Patriots, who topped Great Valley Friday, need two more victories in the playback stages of the District One Class AAAA bracket in order to lock up the district's ninth and final berth in next month's PIAA tournament. Next up is Tuesday's date at Council Rock South.

It's only natural to wonder if Penn Wood, which earned the ninth seed last season, is capable of doing it again. Here's how they pulled it off last season compared to this season:

2010-11 District One Playbacks
Round 1: vs. Pennridge (18-7)
Round 2: vs. Wissahickon (15-10)
Round 3: vs. North Penn (21-6) at neutral site

2011-12 District One Playbacks
Round 1: at Great Valley (19-6)
Round 2: at Council Rock North (19-6)
Round 3: vs. Pennsbury (18-7) or Cheltenham (16-9) at neutral site

If we learn anything from the year-to-year breakdown, it's this: Penn Wood will have had a more difficult road to take in order to win the ninth seed should this year's team pull it off. Why? Because their first two playbacks are on the road, as a result of being the No. 14 seed, and because their opponents have a better combined overall record than those of the 2010-11 team.

Said Penn Wood coach Clyde Jones (pictured): “I knew that group last year was anxious to play. This group, I tell them to bring with them all their gear they'll have to turn in. That way, they get the message that their next loss is their last. They respond, man."

The 2010-11 team featured Division I football recruit Shawn Oakman (Penn State), two-time All-Delco and Division I basketball commit Aaron Brown (West Virginia), and junior-college standout Darian Barnes (Harcum). This year's team has Richardson, a do-it-all senior headed to East Stroudsburg.

“We're just mixing-and-matching," Jones said. "I’m doing it with mirrors. Man, I played a 5-9 guy at the 4 (against Great Valley)."

Which would make Penn Wood's journey to states that much more satisfying, should the Patriots pull it off.

Somewhere between his fifth and sixth basket of the first quarter, Malcolm Richardson had the feeling it was going to be a good day.

Richardson had 25 points, shooting 11-for-22, in Penn Wood's 76-47 win over Spring-Ford Friday night in the opening round of the District One Class AAAA tournament. He went 6-for-7 from the field in the opening quarter.

"I wanted to come out aggressive," Richardson said after the win, marking five years in a row the Patriots have earned an opening-round district victory. "That's what my coaches wanted, so that's what I did. I think that kind of just helped everybody play a little better, you know, by taking off the pressure."

Richardson credited his success to practice the week prior, when Penn Wood coach Clyde Jones had the Patriots running heavily.

"We ran a lot in our drills this week and that's the kind of game we wanted," said Richardson, an East Stroudsburg commit. "Going over the scouting report, we knew they didn't get back well on defense. So we just tried to use that to our advantage."

It wasn't just offense that helped Richardson and the Patriots pull out a win. The senior shooting guard marked Spring-Ford's Josh Dishman. The Rams' leading scorer this season, Dishman was limited to 4-for-7 shooting and only 16 points, which was below his season average.

"Defensively, I knew I could stick No. 20 (Dishman)," Richardson said. "That was the focal point of their offense. He scores a lot of points for them, so if we could get the ball out of his hands early, we had a chance to run it up and make things a bit easier on ourselves."

No. 14 Penn Wood visits No. 3 Coatesville Tuesday night.

(Times staff photo / ROBERT J. GURECKI)

Part II had a familiar feel to Part I.

Chester beat Penn Wood handily Thursday night, using an 80-57 victory at the Clip Joint to all-but-officially clinch the Del Val League championship. It would take Penn Wood (11-7, 6-2) winning out and Chester (19-0, 8-0) losing out to force a tie, but that's unlikely to happen.

Here's another glance at what happened Thursday:

OBSERVATIONS
****Penn Wood opened up a number of six-point leads in the first half. The reason? The Patriots shot 9-for-16 in the opening half. In the second half, they shot 11-for-27 -- not nearly as scorching.
****No one seems to pay attention to Tymier Butler (pictured). The Chester senior had nine points, six boards and four steals, on 3-for-8 shooting. "No one was bothering with us, really," Butler said. Fellow second-stringers also had big games Thursday.
****In the first half, Chester used three different players to defend against Malcolm Richardson, who shot 7-for-16 from the field, 7-for-10 from the foul line and finished with 21 points. "He's a matchup problem, isn't he?" Pats coach Clyde Jones said.
****Chester junior Rondae Jefferson didn't knock down a shot until the third quarter.
****Chester senior Erikk Wright got hit in an, umm, unforgiving location in the third quarter, forcing him to exit. He got back into the game in the fourth quarter feeling "a lot better than I did earlier," Wright said.

QUOTABLE
"This was my career-high tonight. Well, at least my career-high since I've been here. I had a lot of fun tonight. A lot of fun."
---Chester senior Shanier Cottman (pictured), who scored 16 points. Cottman, who at times looked unguardable while knocking down teardrop shots in the lane and uncontested layups, said he scored a career-best 22 points last year at New Beginnings Academy.

NEWS + NOTES
Penn Wood coach Clyde Jones told me two Patriots alums playing at Harcum could find their way onto Division I rosters in the near future. Tyree Johnson, the 2009 Daily Times Player of the Year, and Darian Barnes have garnered interest from Cincinnati and Temple, respectively. Johnson, a point guard, is sitting out the year due to transfer rules while Barnes, a big man, is in his freshman year.

FACES IN THE CROWD
The usual Chester alums were there, with Mo Nelson, Laquan Robinson and Rahlir Jefferson all sitting together across the court from the benches. Villanova assistant coach Doug West took in the game from the West corner of the bleachers. And Kareem Robinson watched the game from the bench. The senior point guard missed his second straight game due to a weak back.

(Times staff photos / ROBERT J. GURECKI)

Night after night, coaches call the Daily Times with box scores to report. And night after night, we're treated to a high-scoring individual display coming from a team in the Del Val League.

Long known as one of the top leagues in Pennsylvania for its team success, the Del Val League is home this season to some of Delaware County's finest individual talent. Of Delco's top-20 scorers, 10 are from the six-team Del Val -- including Penn Wood's Malcolm Richardson (pictured), who leads the county with 19.8 points per game.

"You know what everyone says about this league, that it's the best in the state," Academy Park coach Allen Brydges said this week. "Let's just say there's no particular game that's a picnic."

"It just seems like every team has that guy with a capability to take over a game," Interboro coach Jeff Webb said recently.

As of Monday, Richardson led Del Val's cast of Delco's leading scorers. The others were: Academy Park's Chuck Dorsey (18.0 ppg); Interboro's Christian Irons (17.6 ppg) and Shawn Frampton (13.2); Chichester's Robert Pittman (14.5); Penn Wood's Tyree Bynum (12.6); Glen Mills' George Walker (13.7); and Chester's Rondae Jefferson (11.8) and Darius Robinson (11.6).

A Del Val representative has played for the PIAA Class AAAA title in each of the last five seasons. Chester won it all in 2008 and 2011 and finished runnerup in 2007, while Penn Wood was crowned in 2009 and took second in 2010.

Those seasons, the Del Val did it with team-oriented success. This year, more than the previous four since I've covered basketball in Delco, the Del Val can do it with exceptional scorers. ... And, oh by the way ... five of the six teams will enter league play next week with winning records.

Only in the Del Val.

(Photo: Courtesy Maxpreps.com)

Here's a look at Delco's top 10 leading scorers, through Wednesday's games.

(Through Wednesday)

Name, School ... Avg (Point, Games)

1. Chuck Dorsey, Academy Park ... 20.2 ppg (121 p, 6 g)
2. Malcolm Richardson (right), Penn Wood...19.0 ppg (95p,5g)
3. Shawn Church, Ridley ... 18.8 ppg (169 p, 9 g)
4. Alec Stavetski, Arch. Carroll ... 15.0 ppg (75 p, 5 g)
5. Rob Pittman, Chichester ... 14.5 ppg (116 p, 8 g)
6. Ryan Furst, Marple Newtown ... 14.4 ppg (130 p, 9 g)
7. Matt Fox, Springfield ... 13.8 ppg (110 p, 8 g)
8. George Walker, Glen Mills ... 13.7 ppg (82 p, 6 g)
9. John Fender, Strath Haven ... 13.4 ppg (94 p, 7 g)
10. Tyree Bynum, Penn Wood ... 12.6 ppg (63 p, 5 g)
CLOSE CALLS: Ryan Kelly (Garnet Valley) and Mike McKale (Springfield) each average 12.3 ppg and Pat McGee (Marple Newtown) averages 12.0 ppg.

Some things to consider here:
**It's a three-horse race. Beyond Dorsey, Richardson and Church (pictured), there's a great disparity in the players' averages.
**Penn Wood has two representatives in the top 10, in Richardson and Bynum.
***Glen Mills' Raheem Harvey does not qualify because he hasn't played in two-thirds of his team's games. The 6-8 center, who missed four games, is averaging 26.5 ppg through two games, however.

One final note: The location and time of Chester's game New Year's Day against Christ the King (N.Y.) have changed. The game, between teams that opened the season ranked in nearly every national poll, tips off at 7:45 p.m. at Widener.

After reading that headline, I know what you're thinking: "Who cares about Delaware County's leading scorers? We're only five games into the season!"

But I'll tell you who cares: The people who call me, email me and ask me at games...that's who.

So here are the county's leading scorers, through more than two weeks of the regular season:
1. Shawn Church, Ridley ... 21.0 ppg (126 points, 6 games)
2. Malcolm Richardson, Penn Wood ... 19.8 ppg (79 points, 4 games)
3. Chuck Dorsey, Academy Park ... 19.0 ppg (95 points, 5 games)
4. Rob Pittman, Chichester ... 17.0 ppg (85 points, 5 games)
5. Ryan Furst, Marple Newtown ... 15.5 ppg (93 points, 6 games)
CLOSE BEHIND: Penn Wood's Tyree Bynum, Strath Haven's John Fender, and Marple Newtown's Pat McGee, all of whom average 14.0 ppg.

On the first play of the game, D.J. Irving planted himself on Maalik Wayns' hip. On the second play of the game, Irving knocked down a 3-pointer. Not a bad start, huh? Irving's talents were on display at Wells Fargo Center, where BU lost to Villanova, 68-43, Tuesday.

A two-time All-Delco at Archbishop Carroll, Irving was in town for the second of three trips this season. (The Terriers lost at Saint Joseph's University last month and visit La Salle at the end of this month.) Still, his family and friends were in South Philly to see the Chester native play.

(Check out my column on Irving proving his critics wrong, in Wednesday's Daily Times)

Even Archbishop Carroll coach Paul Romanczuk brought eight players to the game, a ritual he has with his upperclassmen, to see Irving in action. Among the eight? Juniors Yosef Yacob and Isaiah Warren, who like Irving are Chester natives.

Irving finished with 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting, with three rebounds and three steals. He elicited some positive feedback from coaches on both sides:

Said Joe Jones, BU's coach: “D.J. has had a great year. With this team and these players, he's got to score. Got to. He's also got to defend and be our first line of defense. We need him to be an all-around player, not just a guy that sets it up. He's got to score it, he's got to defend it. He's got a lot of responsibility.”

Said Villanova's Jay Wright: “I think D.J. Irving is a great player. I think he's going to have a great career.”

Here's what Irving had to say, including who he'd pick if he was fielding a Delco all-star team:

Q: Were you surprised to see this game played at Wells Fargo Center?
A: “Pretty much, because Wells Fargo is usually for the big teams that come in and they need a lot of people to see the game. The atmosphere, I thought there would be a lot more people. But I thought it was a good game. I just wish we could have kept it a little closer, you know?”

Q: How much of a shock was it to go from a three-point halftime lead to a 25-point loss?
A: “I honestly don't even know what happened. It just went to them real fast. It's something we've got to work on.”

Q: Was it your idea to go out and cover Maalik at the start?
A: “I figured Coach Jones was going to put me on him anyway, so I was all for it. I've seen him a lot of times from summer leagues and all that.”

Q: How has your new role (from true point guard to scoring point guard) with Boston University made you a better player?
A: “It's made me more aggressive, and made me focus more on my shot.”

Q: With Juan'ya (Green, the 2011 Daily Times Player of the Year from Archbishop Carroll) playing so well at Niagara, have you reached out to him at all?
A: “When they played Missouri on ESPN3, that was the only game I got to watch. But I look at all of his box scores and I text him after most every game.”

Q: Was there an older player who taught you about that, keeping tabs on guys?
A: “Not really. I think I learned that from my mom (Jacqueline) and my dad (Desmond). Being in touch with people and staying humble was what they taught me.”

Q: You like what you see in Delco basketball this year? If you had to put together a team, who would you take?
A: Of course the Chester guys – Rondae (Jefferson) and Darius Robinson. He's up and coming. I was telling people that all summer that he's going to be great. I'd take Malcolm Richardson, from Penn Wood. I know him real well and he's great. And, of course, I'll go with my Carroll guys – Yosef (Yacob) and Isaiah (Warren). That's a pretty good team, don't you think?”

(Photos courtesy Boston University athletics)

At one point this month, Penn Wood owned a 2-5 record. The Patriots, District One's Class AAAA defending champion, were down in the dumps following a loss at the hands of league rival Chester.

Maybe all the Patriots needed was a trip nearly 900 miles from home.

Penn Wood thrashed Crenshaw (Calif.), 84-62, in a game that was never all that close at the Brandon Jennings Invitational, in Milwaukee, Wis. That makes five wins in a row for the Patriots (7-5), who appear to have righted the ship.

So is the Patriots' switch flipped?

Aaron Brown, the reigning Daily Times Player of the Year, earned MVP honors Saturday with a 21-point, 13-rebound effort. Shawn Oakman, who had missed a couple with a sprained ankle, scored five points in his return. And Darian Barnes, who had been invisible in the scoring column of late, went off for 19 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks.

Something else to consider: junior point guard Malcolm Richardson, who had strung together consecutive 25-point games, only put down eight against Crenshaw. The fact is, with everyone else scoring, his role wasn't as essential. That's what happens when everything is clicking on all cylinders.

Things were going so well for Penn Wood, even reserve point guard Jerry Price tossed in 14 points.

Lost in the shuffle of it all was the tournament - the Brandon Jennings Invitational. The Milwaukee Bucks star spent time with all of the teams, stayed for all of the games and allowed the players to attend Saturday's Bucks-Grizzlies game.

"It was an awesome event," said Penn Wood coach Clyde Jones.

Yeah, especially when your team has gotten its groove back.

Here are a couple photos from Thursday night's Chester/Penn Wood game, which the host Clippers won, 71-65. (All work by Daily Times photographer Bob Gurecki):

Chester All-Delco Mo Nelson picks the ball from Penn Wood's Jerry Price en route to the rim. Nelson's bucket closed the Clippers' deficit to 16-15 just before the end of the first quarter.

Chester's Richard Grandbury swats a Penn Wood shot attempt in the third quarter, during which Grandbury made blocks on back-to-back possessions.

Chester's Tavaune Griffin tries to pass around a pair of Penn Wood defenders, reigning Daily Times' Player of the Year Aaron Brown, left, among them.

Thursday night is the night.

Longtime titan of the Del Val League Chester and the two-time reigning champ Penn Wood go to battle Thursday in the first installment of the rivalry. Both enter the game at opposite ends of the spectrum.

Penn Wood (2-4) has taken its act on the road, playing teams from Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and New York over the holidays. The two-time PIAA Class AAAA finalists are relying heavily upon reigning Daily Times Player of the Year Aaron Brown, pictured, who is averaging 22.0 points per game. Brown, a West Virginia commit, isn't getting much help elsewhere. Malcolm Richardson averages 6.8 points and Darian Barnes is tallying 5.5.

Chester (6-1), meanwhile, is off to a hot start after finishing last season in a disappointing fashion - in the first round of states. Erikk Wright (pictured) and Lamon Church are dominating the post, averaging 16.0 and 14.4 points per game, respectively. All-Delco Maurice Nelson and forward Rondae Jefferson also are pulling their weight for the Clippers.

Outsiders may think this is Penn Wood's game to lose. But I'm telling you now that Thursday night's meeting will be closer than expected.

Should be a fun one.