Three ... two ... one.

That countdown is significant for the Jim Thorpe boys basketball team.That's because it represents the seed numbers of the teams the No. 6 seeded Olympians will have faced in their run through the District 11 Class 4A playoffs.• Jim Thorpe needed a pair of overtimes to get by No. 3 seed Lehighton in the quarterfinals.• The Olympians then took it to No. 2 seed Salisbury, posting a double digit victory is the semifinals.• The two victories have set the stage for a meeting between Jim Thorpe and No. 1 seed Bethlehem Catholic in Friday's district title game.The appearance in the championship game will be the first for Jim Thorpe in 25 years.The current Olympian team members weren't even born yet, and Olympian head coach Jason McElmoyle was only in middle school back in 1992, when the Olympians last played for a district title."This is great for everyone," McElmoyle said. "I'm really proud of our guys. I'm happy for the school and the town. You can see the passion that this town has for basketball."It was evident by the way they traveled the other night to the semifinal game (against Salisbury). We had a huge student section and fan section at the game."After struggling down the stretch of the regular season - winning just three of its final eight games - Jim Thorpe has dramatically turned things around in the postseason and has played some of its best basketball of the season during the past week.With the Olympians on a roll, McElmoyle said he doesn't see a need to make any drastic changes to the game plan against powerful Bethlehem Catholic."It's going to take the same things that we have been doing the last two games," McElmoyle said. "We have to put it all together. We have to continue to play smart, which we have being doing. We have held it under 10 turnovers the last two games, which is pretty impressive."The Olympians used a patient offense and a strong defense to defeat Lehighton and Salisbury - allowing just 39 and 35 points in those victories.Jim Thorpe will need to continue that if it hopes to slow down the high-octane Golden Hawks' offense, which averages 59.9 points per game. Becahi put up 71 points in a blowout victory over Lower Moreland in the quarterfinals, and then tallied 60 in a rout of Saucon Valley in the semifinals.The Hawks are spearheaded by the dynamic duo of Justin Paz (team-leading 17.4 points per game, 68 three-pointers) and 6-9 Ryan Young, who was named to the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference First Team. Young, a potential Division I recruit, averages a double-double with 14.2 ppg and 12.7 rebounds per contest.Will Melson (9.3 ppg, 30 three-pointers), Amir Pettiford (6.3 ppg, 17 three-pointers) and Jordan Odle (4.3 ppg, 4.2 rbg) complete the Hawks' starting five."We know we have a big challenge ahead of us," McElmoyle said. "Our guys are up for it. We have to be able to handle their size and quickness. So, we're going to have to find a way to limit their touches inside like we did with (Salisbury's Jaxon) Costello on Tuesday night. We will also have to find a way to contain their shooters outside and keep them from penetrating."It's definitely going to be a challenge. But we're excited to go out there and play."The Golden Hawks (20-6 overall) have never won a district title, and the last time they played in a championship game was 1959.The Olympians usually rely on a trio of seniors for their scoring. Chris Micciche leads the Olympians with 13.63 ppg, while Matt Elmore averages 12.58 and Brendan Carroll scores 9.33.With eight seniors - Carroll, Andre Samuel, Elmore, Micciche, Aaron Joyce, George Swartz, Jake Burkhart and John Fikentscher - on the roster, McElmoyle is hoping that his team's experience and veteran leadership will pay off."This is what you play for," said McElmoyle. "These guys have worked for three or four years to get where they are now. It's in front of them now. It's reachable. We just have to go out and take care of business."We know nothing is easy when you get to this point of the season. Everybody's good. We have a challenge ahead of us and we know that, but we're ready for it."