Now that it's back in, the Knoch boys basketball team might be hard to knock out.

Carried into the PIAA Class AAA tournament when Yough reached the WPIAL title game, Knoch (18-6) faces Franklin (24-1) at 8:30 p.m. Friday at Slippery Rock University's Morrow Field House.

"We're excited about this," Knoch coach Les Shoop said. "You don't get a second chance very often."

The Knights suffered a 61-60 loss to Yough in the WPIAL quarterfinal round, a game they led for 31 of the 32 minutes played.

"But we weren't leading at the right time," Shoop said. "That's been our problem this year. Our worst loss was at Moon, and we were only down by two with a minute to play in that game.

"I mean, nobody has blown us out. That's why we feel like we can be playing for a while."

Besides Knoch's 64-54 loss at two-time WPIAL AAA champion Moon, where the Knights also won this season, its losses have been by five points to Mars, by three to Laurel, by two to North Hills and Hampton and by one to Yough.

"They are very similar to us in almost every way imaginable," Franklin coach Steve Shingledecker said.

Indeed, both teams average 65 points per game, play man-to-man defense, rely on experienced point guards and dominating big men.

Franklin rides a 20-game winning streak into this game. Its only loss was by four points against Cathedral Prep in Erie early in the year.

Franklin won the District 10 championship for the fourth time in five years and is 42-8 in two years under Shingledecker.

"They've got the best record in the state in Triple-A," Shoop said. "That's an outstanding program that puts together great teams every year."

Four of Franklin's starters - forwards Nate Byham, Jude Urda and Jake Hassan, along with senior point guard Guiseppe Barone - average in double figures. And the team graduated six seniors from the previous year.

Franklin allows 45 points per game. Knoch gives up 53.5 per contest.

"Playing at Morrow Field House will help us because this will be our fourth or fifth game there," Shingledecker said. "You know the locker room, you know the floor - there's a bit of a comfort zone there.

"Our district was up this year. We had to win three tough games to get here and that helps. We've got a good fan base and we'll bring a lot of people to Slippery Rock," he added.

Knoch hasn't played in two weeks, but has been practicing daily since its loss to Yough. The Knights were scheduled to scrimmage New Castle Wednesday.

"We won't use rust as an excuse if we lose," Shoop said. "We're ready to go."

Junior point guard Jordan Shoop averages 16.2 points and 4.2 assists per game for the Knights. Senior forward Ryan Hollihan averages 15.2 points and 9.9 rebounds per contest.

Senior guard Ryan Ziacik leads Butler County with 78 3-pointers and is shooting 46 percent from beyond the arc.

"Hollihan has a lot of skills for a kid his size and we have to control him in the paint," Shingledecker. "But you also have to be wary of Ziacik's threes, because he can kill you."

Shoop said execution will likely determine the winner, which faces the Perry Traditional Academy-West Allegheny survivor in the next round. Or one team could get hot shooting the ball.

"But I believe defense will decide it," Shoop said. "We both play man-to-man. Whoever plays it most effectively is probably moving on."

<I>Knoch (18-6) vs. Franklin (24-1)First round at SRU, 8:30 p.m., Friday</I><BR></BR><B>Knoch</B>Pos. Name Ht. Yr. PpgPG Jordan Shoop 6-1 Jr. 16.2G Scott Muska 6-1 Jr. 7.3G Ryan Ziacik 6-1 Sr. 12.9F Eric Czech 6-1 Sr. 6.1F Ryan Hollihan 6-7 Sr. 15.2<B>Coach: Les Shoop</B><BR></BR><B>Franklin</B>Pos. Name Ht. Yr. PpgPG Guiseppe Barone 5-10 Sr. 10.0G Pat Kahle 5-10 Sr. 6.0F Jude Urda 6-3 Jr. 15.0F Jake Hassan 6-4 Sr. 10.0F Nate Byham 6-5 Jr. 15.0<B>Coach: Steve Shingledecker</B>