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COLUMBUS — Two days later than expected, the highly-anticipated Division I girls basketball state championship showdown between Lakota West High School and Mount Notre Dame will finally unfold.

After a snowstorm rolled through the Ohio Valley over the weekend — postponing the contest, which was originally set for Saturday, March 8 — the two teams will hook up at 8:30 p.m. today at Ohio State's Value City Arena.

"Mount Notre Dame is a great team," West coach Andy Fishman said. "They have great coaching there. I'd like to think we'll be well-prepared also. The players are ready. I expect this is going to be a fun, exciting game, and representative of the top basketball played in the state."

The Firebirds elected to stay in Columbus Sunday night rather than venturing home to West Chester Twp. They practiced for an hour and 15 minutes at Harvest Prep in the afternoon.

"We have everyone together right now," Fishman said. "We're here, we're safe, and the state said that they were prepared to keep all the teams here. That's the understanding we had, and it seems to make the most sense right now."

Fishman doesn't believe there's an advantage in having two extra days to prepare. Regular-season events such as the Pickerington Holiday Classic and Classic in the Country Challenge help get West ready for games on back-to-back days, which would have occurred had the weather not interfered.

The third-ranked Firebirds (26-1) defeated Youngstown Boardman 62-42 Friday night in a state semifinal.

"Now, it's just like anything else," Fishman said. "It's like the districts to regionals, with two days. I don't see it making much of a difference. It's just another curveball we'll adjust to."

West's matchup with second-ranked MND (25-2) — state champs three of the last four years, including the last two — marks the first time in the state's 33-year tournament history that two girls teams from the Greater Cincinnati area face off in the finals.

"We're going to have to play 32 minutes, and if happens to go overtime, we're going to have to play that, too," Cougars' coach Dante Harlan said. "We have to find a way to put everything together, and play every possession like it's the last one."

The Firebirds beat MND 61-55 in the season-opener for both teams back on Nov. 21, at West — their first victory against MND in six tries.

The Cougars eliminated West in each of the last two tournaments. In 2006, the Cougars knocked out the Firebirds 54-39 in the regional semifinals, then in last year's regional finals, they were victorious 58-49.

"When you step on the floor, you can't worry about who you're playing," said West senior Amber Gray, who had 16 points in the regular-season meeting. "You just have to go out and play your game. If we play our game, we should come out on top."

Contact this reporter at (513) 755-5113 or smatthews@coxohio.com.

D-I girls basketball

state championship

Who: No. 3 Lakota West (26-1) vs. No. 2 Mount Notre Dame (25-2)

When: 8:30 p.m. today

Where: Schottenstein Center,

Ohio State University, Columbus