EDINBORO — General McLane boys basketball coach Andy Schulz didn't sleep much this week.

His nights were spent watching tapes of Slippery Rock in preparation for their District 10 playoff game. With every frame that went by, his heart raced and his eyes widened.

It was his Rockets Horror Picture Show.

Schulz nearly saw that horror again up close and personal Thursday when his Lancers nearly squandered a 17-point lead and watched Slippery Rock come within a basket of tying the defending state champions twice in the fourth quarter only to hold on for a 74-64 win atEdinboro University.

"They are very good," Schulz said. "I saw them on film and I said, 'Man, we got a bad draw here.' I think they are more talented than anyone in their league. They play hard as heck and they are determined."

Early in the contest, General McLane (22-3) was determined not to let Slippery Rock (15-10) get any momentum.

The Lancers went on a 15-1 run in the first half to take a 26-10 lead early in the second quarter and led 37-20 late in the first half.

But Slippery Rock never let the game get completely out of hand.

"We got down by (17 points) and most teams would have quit," said SlipperyRock coach SeanStrickland. "But not this team. This team has been through so much adversity this year that I knew we'd come back and make it a game."

Early in the season, the Rockets struggled to keep leads and to put teams away. Late in the year, that weakness turned into a strength as SlipperyRock showed a penchant for launching improbable rallies.

It nearly pulled off the most improbable comeback against General McLane.

Trailing by four points with three minutes remaining, Slippery Rock freshman Brian Giesler took a 3-pointer that rimmed out. McLane guard Dan Mulligan promptly answered at the other end with a 3-pointer that shifted the momentum and paved the way for the Lancers' victory.

Mulligan scored 15 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter.

Shawn Walker was as good in the first half as Mulligan was in the fourth quarter.

The Lancers senior center scored 19 points in the first two quarters and finished with 25 points and 12 rebounds.

Slippery Rock didn't have an answer for him.

"Does anyone have an answer for Walker?" Strickland said. "What killed us was the offensive rebounds. We worked on it every single day. You just can't simulate how hard and aggressive they are on the boards. We brought in alumni, we brought in everyone we could to simulate Walker, but you just can't do it."

McLane had no one who could simulate Derrick Orloski.

The Slippery Rock junior guard repeatedly drove through the Lancers' defense, scoring a team-high 20 points.

"He's just so darn quick," Schulz said. "We were trying to get him to drive to the right, but he kept going left."

Senior Matt Shearer came off the bench to score 12 points for the Rockets. He also was able to keep Walker somewhat in check in the second half.

Shearer and fellow senior Brian Kelly missed the last five games because of a school suspension.

Senior Zack Ejzak, who scored 91 points in the last three games, finished with only six points for the Rockets.

GeneralMcLane will play Grove City in the second round of the district playoffs Monday at a site and time to be determined.

Slippery Rock can only lament it didn't get a chance at a rematch with its arch rival. Strickland must also say goodbye to his senior class, which helped the Rockets reach the postseason for the first time in four seasons.

"They left a legacy and they need to be proud of it," Strickland said.

SLIPPERYROCK 64Ethan Geisler 2-4 4-4 9, DerrickOrloski 8-12 3-7 20, Zack Ejzak 3-8 0-0 6, Nick Cress 2-3 0-0 4, BrianGiesler 3-8 1-1 8, Brian Kelly 2-3 0-0 5, Matt Shearer 6-8 0-0 12, Ryan Gordon 0-0 0-0 0, Brant Sloan 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 26-46 8-12 64

GENERAL McLANE 74Ryan Skelton 1-1 2-4 4, Blidi Wreh-Wilson 6-9 1-2 14, Kellen O'Neill 2-11 2-6 7, Dan Mulligan 5-9 8-8 19, Shawn Walker 12-18 1-1 25, Dom DiVito 2-7 1-4 5, Kyle Steffey 0-1 0-0 0, Eric Kulka 0-0 0-0 0, Luke Jahn 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 28-56 15-24 74

Slippery Rock 10 14 17 23—64General McLane 22 15 14 23—743-point goals: Orloski, Kelly, Giesler, Geisler; Wreh-Wilson, O'Neill, Mulligan