GROVE CITY — In a sea of red, the Slippery Rock High boys basketball team celebrated near its bench at the end of a tense, hard-fought game.

The win did little to improve the Rockets' playoff hopes; it merely kept them on life support.

But on Tuesday night, none of that mattered.

Slippery Rock withstood a litany of adversity, coming back from 10- and seven-point deficits in the second half to stun rival Grove City 56-55 on the Eagles' home floor.

"Looking at my guys after the game, seeing the seniors hugging, that was a moment in itself," said Slippery Rock coach Phil Bushre. "Forget the records, forgot what we've done."

Senior guard Derrick Orloski put the Rockets ahead with two free throws late and then Grove City senior point guard Kyle Perrine watched his jumper from the foul line rim out with less than five seconds left to seal the fates of both teams.

The win gave Slippery Rock the season sweep over Grove City for the first time since 1989.

Bushre was 6 the last time that happened.

"I think that's a testament to our kids," Bushre said. "They've really worked hard."

Slippery Rock certainly worked hard Tuesday night.

There were 10 lead changes in the game, but the Rockets found themselves down 40-30 with 3:41 remaining in the third quarter and 51-44 with five minutes left in the fourth, but rallied both times.

"I think we just really came together tonight," Bushre said.

Orloski provided a spark for Slippery Rock, scoring a team-high 16 points and flying around the court like a man possessed.

Alec McDeavitt gave the Rockets another shot in the arm in the fourth quarter, scoring six points in the final frame.

"He has improved tremendously all year," Bushre said. "The last 10 games, he has really been a huge asset to the team."

Perrine turned in his typical game, scoring 19 points, handling the ball well and finding open teammates under the hoop.

Grove City's Patrick Johnson added 14 points and Jeff Hershberger 12 points to go along with a slew of rebounds.

"(Kyle) has had a great year, a great career," said Grove City coach Don Fee. "I really feel bad for him. He wanted to get to the playoffs badly. I thought we were going to sneak in."

The Eagles (8-13, 5-8) may still sneak in. The Rockets (8-12, 4-9) aren't eliminated from the wild playoff race, either, where there are currently five teams fighting for the final playoff spot out of Region 5.

Only an MIT graduate can figure out all the possible playoff scenarios.

"We don't really talk about that right now," Bushre said. "We're just really getting back to why we play basketball. We have one game left guaranteed. A lot of good things have happened this season."

Slippery Rock will host Hickory on Friday while Grove City travels to first-place Farrell Saturday.

Should the Eagles miss the postseason, it will be the first time since 1990.

"It just came down to little things," Fee said. "These guys need to grow up that way. All those little things add up."

SLIPPERY ROCK 56Ethan Geisler 4-8 0-3 8, Ryan Gordon 1-2 0-0 3, Alex McDeavitt 4-6 0-0 9, Brant Sloan 1-2 2-4 4, Derrick Orloski 7-9 2-4 16, BrianGiesler 5-14 0-0 14, Brent Ayers 1-2 0-0 2. Totals:

GROVE CITY 55Kyle Perrine 8-16 2-2 19, Rashaad Durant 3-3 0-0 6, Jeff Hershberger 4-9 5-10 12, Patrick Johnson 5-9 3-4 14, Brady Beech 0-0 0-0 0, Jon Anderson 0-5 2-2 2, Jason Ferderber 1-1 0-0 2, Torin Smith 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 21-43 11-18 55

Slippery Rock 16 9 19 12—56Grove City 14 15 17 9—553-point goals: Gordon, McDeavitt, Giesler 4; Perrine, Johnson

JV: Slippery Rock 42-38

Friday: Hickory at Slippery Rock

Saturday: Grove City atFarrell