Folks, this is the final week of the regular season ... before teams either bow out of the hunt or make their final push for the District One playoffs.

Here's a quick hit on the three teams that need big showings this week:

Springfield: The Cougars have picked a poor time to go on only their second losing streak of the season. With winnable games against Central League goes Garnet Valley and Radnor, Springfield could move up a few spots, to the high teens, in the Class AAAA bracket. That means the Cougars wouldn't be saddled with a second-round matchup with one of the district's top five seeds.

Penncrest: The reigning Central League champions might be on the outside looking in on the Class AAAA field without wins against Haverford and Marple Newtown this week. Going 2-0 down the stretch could give the Lions one of the final seeds.

Ridley: Above and below the Green Raiders go ... in relation to the .500 mark, that is. Ridley, like Penncrest, is flirting with one of the final spots in the Class AAAA tournament. A two-win week could go a long way toward making that happen.

Springfield coach Kevin McCormick assures that, during a two-game stretch earlier this year, his team shot less than 25 percent from the field.

Based on what I saw Friday night, I find this hard to believe.

The Cougars shot 25-for-52 in a blowout win over Marple Newtown, a 64-46 decision that left things a little more dicey in the Central League standings ... assuming one team (Upper Darby) doesn't finish the season unbeaten.

Springfield was spot-on from the floor against Marple Newtown. The Cougars made seven consecutive shots to start the second half, rolling to a huge lead.

And they got contributions from everyone. Brendan McNamee picked clean the offensive glass, going for five of his 10 boards on the scoring end. That led to easy buckets. Outlet passes from Steve Baker and Dave Carpenter made things easy for wingers Adam Washington and Zack DeVito.

That explains the 48-percent shooting night had by Springfield. It doesn't explain how McCormick's crew could possibly have had 25-percent shooting nights in the past.

"It's a work in progress," McCormick explained afterward.

Well, everything looked A-OK from my vantage point.

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.

Yes, Springfield lost the District One Class AAA championship game Saturday. Yes, it was within reach. Yes, the Cougars have won only two district titles since 1945.

But, hey - why hang your head about a five-point loss to top-seeded Holy Ghost Prep? There's still the PIAA playoffs. It's new life for these Cougars.

"Maybe in a day or two, we can start talking about it and getting ready for it," said junior forward Adam Washington, who scored 15 points. "This was the game we wanted to win. We just didn't do it."

Junior guard Zack DeVito was so stung by the loss that, on two occasions in post-game interviews, he forgot the questions he was trying to answer.

"This one hurts because this was a goal of ours from the beginning of the season," said senior forward Wally Rutecki. "It didn't happen for us, but we can focus on states now."

Springfield (18-8) begins its PIAA journey Friday.

And just like that, Springfield's district-title aspirations were dashed.

The Cougars dropped a back-and-forth District One Class AAA title tilt to Holy Ghost Prep, 47-42, Saturday night at Villanova's Pavilion.

Adam Washington scored 15 points (on 6-for-10 scoring), Dave Carpenter had eight and Zack DeVito and Wally Rutecki had six apiece for Springfield (18-8), which faces District 12's Murrell Dobbins in the first round of the PIAA playoffs next week.

More to come...

If you stopped out to Acme last night - or decided to stay in and avoid the apocalyptic-type snow that was forecast - you probably missed this one.

It was a doozy.

Springfield knocked off Penncrest, 57-48, Friday in a night game-turned-matinee in the Cougars' home gym. Snow kept the game, part of the Central League's Coaches v. Cancer fundraiser, from being played after dark, but it couldn't keep the Cougars from pulling the upset.

With the win, Springfield (15-6, 11-4) locked up a spot in next week's Central League championship tournament. Also, the Cougars have won 11 of their last 12, after dropping five in a row from Dec. 22 to Jan. 5.

Senior forward Wally Rutecki, pictured, had the big game for the Cougars, with 22 points and eight rebounds. Brendan McNamee and Zack DeVito tossed in 18 and 11, respectively, for the victors.

How bad did things get for visiting Penncrest (18-3, 12-3)? The Lions trailed, 24-13, at halftime and 41-21 entering the fourth quarter. Andrew Radomicki scored 22 for Penncrest.